SGU: A Message in Time
by Sage1988
Summary: When a certain Timelord and his Impossible Girl arrived on Destiny at the same time the ship is reunited with some old friends, a series of events are set into motion that will change the fate of the universe. As losses mount will they all make it through the mayhem or be destroyed by those who would end all reality? Sequel to SGU: Guiding Light
1. Chapter 1

_I do not own Stargate Universe or Doctor Who_

 _Set around six months after the end of SGU: Guiding Light_

 _Set after Doctor Who 'The Last Christmas'_

 **Chapter 1 – The Many Faced Man**

 _Destiny_ was now six months into its new mission to chart the distant and unknown corners of the Milky Way galaxy. The battles against the Lucian Alliance had increased across the galaxy as the SGC stepped up its campaign to tear the organisation down. The crew of _Destiny_ watched from afar as they 'Went boldly where no one had gone before' as their resident science fiction geek would say, all the while having a few adventures of their own.

Today however was marked a special occasion for the ship's crew which had the original crewmembers that had stayed on-board buzzing with excitement. Today was the day that four old friends were returning to the ship for a visit.

In the ship's gate room, Camille was waiting with Eli, Matt, Vanessa and Chloe as the stargate dialled in from Earth, once the seven chevrons locked the unstable vortex erupted from the empty space inside before settling back into the well-known puddle. After a few seconds four people emerged from the simmering gateway before it abruptly shut down. The people on _Destiny_ smiled as General Everett Young, Lieutenant Tamara Johansen Young, IOA Agent Kate Todd and the Head of Research at Stargate Command Claire Williams set foot on the ship that had once been their home.

"Hello again." Camille said with a smile as they set their bags down on the deck and came forward to give their old friends greetings. Everett gave Matt a manly handshake before doing the same to Eli while TJ received a hug from Chloe, Camille gave Kate a hug and Vanessa got a hug from Claire. Rush stood in the door way and gave her a nod in welcome which Claire returned, knowing the man well enough that this was the warmest greeting she was likely to receive.

"It's so good to see you again." Claire said as she greeted one of her best friends before seeing Eli looking at her and she said over Vanessa's shoulder. "You too Eli."

"Great to see you too." Eli said feeling happy at seeing them again. He didn't do so well when people he cared about left his life. Something to do with his dad he supposed. But he had genuinely missed them. Especially after all they had gone through together.

"So how are they?" Chloe asked Claire noticing her now flat stomach which when they had last met was swollen with pregnancy.

"Three girls; Samantha, Alia and Eve. All healthy." Claire said with a grin, she had been enslaved for life the first time she had seen the three girls in the infirmary of the SGC where they had been born. Already they were driving her nuts with late night feedings and nappy changes but she was loving every minute of it. Right now the girls where under the care of Sam and Jack O'Neill while Claire took some time to see her old friends again.

"That's wonderful." Vanessa genuinely happy for her before turning to TJ who had been talking with Camille and asked seeing her stomach was once again flat too. "And you?"

"One boy, Steven." TJ said thinking of her own children who were currently with her parents while she and Everett had taken the opportunity to visit _Destiny_ under the pretext of doing crew evaluations with Kate who had been only too happy to join them. Claire had come aboard under the pretext of bringing several system updates and upgrades to some of the technology on the ship. Corporal Selene Howard came in and seeing Kate Todd rushed over to welcome the older woman.

Claire smiled at their enthusiasm as she walked off to the Interface room, as she passed the other original members of the crew she smiled in greeting. When she arrived in the apple core as Eli had long deemed the room much to Brody's annoyance she hooked up the computer storage devices she had in her bag to the large core in the centre of the room before going over to the vacant control panel to start the download process. She looked over when she heard a noise and saw Lisa Park, Adam Brody and Dale Volker all standing there.

"Claire." Lisa said excited to see her old boss and friend and came over to give the younger woman a hug which she quickly returned.

"It's good to see you." Claire told Lisa with genuine warmth, she had really missed the crew after leaving for her new job on Earth. While it was necessary decision given her responsibilities she could not help but miss this ship and all the people on it.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Now that she was on-board the ship again TJ couldn't help herself but go to check out her old infirmary. It hadn't been hers for months but she was still drawn to her old workspace. On Earth she had begun training courses to work towards her dream of being a full doctor in between caring for her son and daughter. She still had a coffee with Claire everyday as their children played at their feet it was not the same as being here on the ship where she and so many others had come into their own.

When she arrived she saw the doctor that had replaced her was restocking the cupboards with fresh supplies. Molly O'Sullivan turned around and grinned when she saw her predecessor in the doorway and in her friendly Irish accent welcomed her.

"Hello Lieutenant." Molly said before waving her hand to invite TJ inside. TJ walked in somewhat awkwardly not sure of herself given how she felt like an intruder in Molly's workspace. Molly however was eager to show her the new equipment the ship now had, the foundry had been used to construct seven new modified Doctor Beds all now fully modified to work on humans and they had built several baths that could be filled with Medella the ultra-effective healing agent that they had acquired on Novus.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Later that evening, Claire was sitting on one of the sofas in the leisure room with Vanessa, Chloe and TJ all trading stories of their lives since the last time they had seen each other. Camille was catching up with Young and Kate, hoping that they would distract her from missing Sharon who was back on Earth dealing with a family emergency.

"And this king really thought that he was a god and that if he commanded we would obey his every whim." Vanessa said telling them about one of the missions the ship had gone on. "He actually thought I would be one of his wives." Vanessa added with a shudder remembering the fat and delusional man that had tried to keep her as one of his many wives when she had gone with Sharon to established diplomatic relations. She had ended up using her ancient powers to make the people think she was a genuine goddess and used the underlying hatred of the man to spark a revolt. She had personally throw the overweight king out of the large window of the harem with her telekinesis.

"Honestly, I go away for a few months and you go and nearly get married to a mad king." Claire said in mock exasperation before laughing the rest of them and Chloe told TJ looking guilty.

"Sorry we couldn't be at the wedding." TJ smiled at her guilt over not being able to attend the small wedding between herself and Everett. It had been a close friends and family affair organised with only a week to spare before her giving birth. Everett had promised her that they would renew their vows with a proper ceremony with all their family and friends but she didn't mind they were together as a family with their son and daughter.

"You were in deep space, we understood." TJ said with an amused smile at the idea that they would have come thousands of light-years just to be at her wedding and knowing that they would probably do it too. Of her close friends from the ship only Claire had been there having already been on Earth.

They all took a sip of their drinks and Claire remembered news from Atlantis and asked them.

"Did you hear about Jennifer Keller?"

"No what's happened?" Chloe asked remembering the nice doctor from Atlantis that had accidentally contracted the virus that had changed or was changing Claire and Vanessa into Ancients.

"She's stopped trying to cure herself." Claire said with sad smile feeling bad for the other woman. "Nothing that she's tried has worked and now the virus is so far along that even if she managed to stop it she would be more ancient than human. So she's decided to stop trying and let it run its course." She told them feeling bad for Jennifer, she had tried so hard to stop herself changing but it had all been for nothing. She had sent a message to her that if she ever needed to talk, just call and Claire would help in any way she could. Claire's own transformation was now complete and she was practicing everyday with her powers to discover just what limits there were.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Later that night when the gate room was deserted with most of the crew in their beds asleep, the quiet in the gate room was disturbed by the wheezing of a great engine and a wind seemed to blow from nowhere as a large blue box started fading into existence against the wall to the left of the stargate. The noise and wind stopped when the box had fully materialized and silence once again settled in the room. The blue box with police written around the top stood quiet for a moment till the door on the front opened allowing an older looking man and a young woman to climb out. The older man was tall and gaunt with a face that might as well have been carved out of marble it was so strong and his eyes looked around the room with an intensity that many would find off-putting. His hair was silver and cut short on his head. He was dressed in a white shirt and dark blue trousers with a cardigan of the same colour and black boots. On top of the cardigan was dark blue coat with red lining with two golden rings on his hands.

The young woman that was with him couldn't have been more of a contrast even dismissing the difference in sex; she was much shorter standing only an inch over five foot, her hair was a deep rich brown and worn long going past her shoulders to near her mid back. She had clear curves which were outlined by the black leather jacket she was wearing and knee length red tartan pencil skirt and black tights that went down to smart shoes with a slightly raised heel. She didn't wear make-up, her large brown eyes didn't need it. Right now she looked at her companion with an annoyed expression.

"Go on then where are we this time?" Clara asked with weary acceptance. The Doctor had promised her that he was going to get her back in time for her afternoon class with the Year 9's but given his track record with accuracy of getting where they wanted to be she should have anticipated things going wrong. Still she could not help that tingle that ran through her at the strange new place she found herself in and the promise of adventure that held her firmly in its grasp.

"Don't know, something pulled the Tardis off course." The Doctor said in his Scottish accent in confusion. He took a close look at the room they had landed in and frowned for a moment before doing a small jig on the deck. Clara looked on without comment, used to his antics by now and knowing that however strange his actions there was always a purpose. "We're on a spaceship, I feel the vibration of the engines in the deck plates as they carry the ship through the universe and the artificial gravity that holds us on the floor." He said in a dramatic tone before making another observation. "It's very old, ancient." He didn't see the Kino that acted as a security camera in the corner of the room.

"I can tell." Clara said seeing the old and rusting area around her. But the Doctor said as he moved forward.

"No I mean it was made by the Ancients, a race of advanced humans from another galaxy. That is enough of a giveaway." The Doctor told his companion who turned to see what he was looking at and she stared in awe of the large ring in the centre of the room.

"What is it?" She asked as she moved forward and gently moved her hand over the intricate carving on the ring. It was metal but unlike any metal she had ever seen or felt.

"A stargate." The Doctor told her. "A very old one by the design, first generation used before the Ancients reached their peak. Basically it generates a wormhole between itself and another stargate to allow you to go to anywhere else with a stargate in moments. Best not to let the wormhole get to close to a sun or a black hole though weird things can start happening."

He was about to head over to the consoles on the other side of the room to get more information when his highly tuned hearing picked up the noise of boots hitting the deck before men and women armed with guns came rushing into the room standing on both levels of the gate room. Sighing at the familiar situation the Doctor and Clara stepped forward with hands raised. Looking at the soldiers who were all dressed quite haphazardly given the speed at which they had had to get out of bed and into the gate room, the Doctor nearly groaned as he said.

"Twenty First Century humans on an Ancient spaceship. This can't be good."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"How did they get on-board?" Camille asked the senior staff once they had all been woken and all of them looked annoyed at being disturbed in the middle of the night. Claire dressed in a camisole and sleeping shorts told them while sitting meditation style on one of the tables told her.

"We have no idea. The gate hasn't been active and while we detected their life signs the moment they exited that box of theirs we still can't even get a reading on it. Either it was beamed here by another ship in the vicinity or it travels by some other means."

"That's not much." Young said as he leaned against the table in the mess hall where they were all meeting. Most of the senior members of the crew had gathered here with so it felt a bit by old times. Young was there in his military fatigues with Matt and Greer in a similar state. Vanessa was standing there in her tank top with short shorts and white socks. Varro stood next to his girlfriend with a t-shirt and jogging pants. Camille wore a camisole and her own jogging pants with Kate and TJ in the same state of dress. Lisa Park stood next to Greer with a nightie covering her underwear while Brody and Volker wore half done up shirts and hastily donned trousers. Molly wore a dressing gown over her own underwear so Rush was the only one in the room fully clothed. Eli and Ginn had slept through the whole thing again and had yet to be woken despite repeated calls.

"It's all we've got." Rush said frustrated himself by the mystery they were presented with. "We really need more information on who these people are. I doubt that their arrival here is just a coincidence. But I have to ask; what kind of man goes around the universe in a Police telephone box?" The blank looks around the room made him frown in frustration as he was the only one in the room that knew what one of them was. He had seen them occasionally as a child in Glasgow before they had been phased out.

Camille looked instinctively towards Young who just shook his head slightly, refusing to make the decision. This was her ship now, she had to make the call.

"Okay Claire." Camille said turning to face the red head who was now sitting on one of the tables. "I want you to examine that weird box of theirs before questioning them. Maybe your powers can pick up on something. Rush you try and find out how they got here."

Now fully awake Claire nodded before sliding off the table and made her way back to her old room which had been left vacant for her and where she was currently staying till her return to Earth. Walking into the room she quickly slipped out of her camisole and shorts before pulling on her jeans and t-shirt and slipping on her boots. She fluffed out her hair leaving it straight and free down her back. She then put on her leather jacket before strapping her particle magnum and Ancient PDA to her hips and picking up a small bag of scientific instruments before making her way down to the gate room where the mysterious box had been left. Since they didn't know what it was they didn't want to risk moving it in case it exploded or something else happened, without being able to see inside it what else could they do? She saw the tools left by Rush when he had been examining the box beforehand. Up until now Claire had yet to see the mysterious box for herself and the moment that she caught sight of the blue object she stopped cold. A wave of déjà vu hit her like a bulldozer.

"I've seen you before." Claire said quietly as her feelings of familiarity spun around and around her mind. She didn't know where or when but she knew that she had seen this thing before somewhere. Walking up to the box she dropped the bag without even thinking and her PDA was forgotten in its holster as she carefully placed her hand on the wooden door of the box. She felt the faint vibration through her fingertips, she knew there was more inside and reached out with her mind to try and get a better sense as to what it was.

Then without warning her mind exploded with images and sensations that she had never experienced before and she opened her eyes to see herself flying through golden tunnel that was made of shifting waves of energy that moved like water in a storm. She felt the waves hit her and the sense of exhilaration that passed through her was unlike anything she had ever felt before. Then images of different men flashed through her mind.

The first was an old man with white hair, then a short man with dark Beatles like hair. Then a tall dashing dandy with white hair dressed in velvet appeared before being replaced by a man with big curly hair and teeth wearing a very long scarf, the next man that appeared was a younger man with blond hair and dressed in classic cricket whites. When his image flashed she felt that strange sense of familiarity again before it quickly passed.

The following man that she saw was another blond haired man but taller with his hair in curls and dressed in the most hideous multi-coloured coat Claire had ever seen. Following that was a much shorter man with dark hair wearing a white hat whose eyes burned with a cold and cunning intelligence. After that that there was a younger man with brown hair in waves around his head and Edwardian style clothing before a much older man with grey hair and a worn face and eyes that were heavy with sadness and regret.

Then tall man appeared with pale blue eyes and very short brown hair. His ears were large and he wore a plain black leather jacket. Following him was a shorter man with lighter brown hair that was thick and matched his brown eyes on his freckled face. He wore a long brown overcoat that was teamed with a blue suit with red pinstripes and converse trainers. Claire thought he looked quite hot but in her current situation didn't have time to admire the man before the next one replaced him. He was possibly the youngest looking of the group; his hair was much darker than his predecessor and longer going past his ears. His chin was much more noticeable as was his tweed jacket and bowtie before finally the face of the man that had stepped out of the box before came into view.

Claire suddenly managed to let go of the Tardis, she didn't know how she knew the word but somehow it was in her head. Her breathing rapid she just stared at the ship and said to it.

"What was that? What are you?" She asked not expecting an answer but she knew whatever it was…it was alive and she had touched its mind.

Claire looked at her watch and realised to her great surprise that the only seconds had passed since she had touched the Tardis and yet it had felt like much longer. Her breath now coming slower and more normal, she took out her scanner and held it to the front of the machine. When it registered nothing at all Claire frowned before going to some more powerful scanning equipment. But whatever she tried, she couldn't get a single reading of the blue box. Nearly throwing the scanners across the room in frustration, Claire glared at the blue box before taking a few calming breaths and wondering if it was a good idea but having little course left, Claire walked to the Tardis and put her hand back on its surface, this time when the images hit her she was a bit more prepared and was able to feel the vast energy held inside. She took her hand off the panel and picked up her tools, putting them back in her bag before returning to her room and doing an hour of concentrated meditation to centre herself after being knocked off balance by what had happened before she faced the owner of the box.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Later in Camille's office the Doctor sat casually on the sofa playing with a yoyo while he waiting impatiently for whoever was going to question him to arrive. Claire took a fortifying breath as she entered the room noticing the Kinos in the corners that would record and monitor the conversation. The Doctor's intense eyes turned towards her immediately but despite her feeling a little intimidated she kept her back straight and her eyes meeting his refusing to be put off. She walked forward and sat on the chair facing the sofa so she was sitting directly opposite.

"Took you long enough now where is Clara?" The Doctor asked furiously. They had kept him waiting for hours and had split him up from his companion and some would say his conscience. Claire took his fury without becoming defensive in response and told him calmly.

"Clara is fine, she's waiting for her turn in the next room." She mentioned hoping that would put his mind at ease she had hoped that she might be able to run this as an interview rather than an interrogation. While his expression didn't relax at all, his posture slackened slightly before it suddenly tensed again as he looked her over like she was a piece of bacteria under a microscope.

"Do you have a name?" Claire asked politely trying to be professional as she studied the man in front of her just as intently.

"Scottish ancestry." The Doctor said hoping to put her off balance so he could control the conversation. Until he saw Clara in the flesh and unharmed he considered these people a threat and he still didn't know what they were doing here on this ship. "Orphan, smarter than most people even suspect and trained by soldiers judging by the way you move and the way you check a room the moment you enter for any apparent threats. Taught to fight hand to hand so you are always balanced and alert ready to defend yourself at a moment's notice. You've seen a lot and it's left you with an open mind but you are guarded about your thoughts because of how you grew up and there are parts of your past that you don't want your friends to know about. And you're a mother." He finished as her eyes widened with each detail he got right analysing her like Sherlock Holmes and by responding the way she did had confirmed all of his assertions.

"How could you know that?" Claire asked trying to suppress her feelings of anxiety at how much he seemed to know about her.

"It's all in the small details, plus your reaction proved me right. It's something the human race should really work on." The Doctor said seriously and not without a bit of superiority and Claire's eyes narrowed in anger at his cold smugness so she decided to repay him in kind. She took an intense look before telling him.

"Alien, probably a lot older than you look one thousand years old no make that two thousand." Claire said calmly and smirked when she saw his own eyes widen confirming her assertions, proving he had many of the flaws that he mocked in humans. "You like humans most of the time since you are travelling with one and if your age is any indication I doubt she is the first, one of a long line perhaps, the knowledge of the Ancients you described earlier seems rather first hand so that indicates that you have the ability to travel in time. You're a man that is capable of violence but wants peace so you never carry a weapon, just this." Claire said holding the small and slim rod like device the Doctor had had with him when Greer had searched through the man's pockets which had taken a lot longer than they would have thought. "It creates sonic waves but nothing that could hurt anyone, but it works well as a tool like not a hammer maybe a screwdriver. A sonic screwdriver." She said her smirk growing wider as she turned the tables on the man.

"Touché." The Doctor said getting the point. This girl was smart and wasn't intimidated easily. She reminded him a lot of Amy Pond, the fiery red head that had been one of the best parts of his previous incarnation. Deciding it was best to be honest he said. "I'm the Doctor." He answered her earlier question and she nodded assuming the name was either a title that was bestowed in his culture or something along the lines an oath or vow he had made.

"Claire Williams." Claire told him with a smile now that the ice had been slightly broken and her passive telepathy told her he was telling the truth, not sensing dishonesty. "Now can you tell what you are doing on this ship?"

"The Tardis was pulled off course on our way to somewhere else." The Doctor said not wanting to reveal his ship's full capabilities to these people and now asked a question of his own in turn. "What are you all doing on an Ancient spaceship?"

" _Destiny_." She told him and when he gave her a strange look she clarified. "The name of the ship, we were attempting to dial all nine chevrons on the stargate when our base was attacked and we were forced through the gate when the planet was about to explode. When we arrived we started repairing the ship and eventually after nearly a year and a half the ship completed its mission and was sent home. We had control of it by then so we decided to use it to explore the galaxy." She told him. This didn't worry her, she had only given him basis facts.

"So you're UNIT?" He asked wondering if that was the case why they hadn't recognised the Tardis, they were the only organisation he knew of on Earth now that Torchwood was gone that had this much contact with aliens on a regular basis. Claire raised an eyebrow at the mention of the organisation.

"No we are the SGC. How do you know about UNIT?" She asked and the Doctor told her.

"I help them out from time to time. Kate Lethbridge Stewart is a good friend of mine so was her father, one of the best men I have ever met and a true friend." He said remembering the daughter of one of his best friends in all his lives and how the two were alike and yet different and then he asked his interrogator. "What is the SGC?"

"It stands for Stargate Command." Claire said. "We use the Stargate to explore the galaxy and defend Earth from alien threats. Now if you know about UNIT then you must have been to Earth and frequently too." She said.

"Yes I end up saving your little world quite a lot." The Doctor said with a touch of arrogance. "UNIT defends the Earth too so why aren't you two joined up?" He asked. Claire bit her lip when she thought about the relationship the two organisations had with each other. It was an intense rivalry sometimes to be the ones that save the day when Earth came under threat but despite this they had an unspoken deal. Off world matters where handled by the SGC while issues on the homeworld were usually dealt with by UNIT. Staying out of each other's way seemed to be the best option at the moment after one of two tense incidents when they had both responded to alien incursions at the same time and although when someone had once talked about merging the two organisations there had been a lot of arguments against it. Personally Claire thought that the powers that be were worried that if two organisations like the SGC and UNIT were joined as one they would become far too powerful to be easily controlled. Another theory she had was that they wanted to keep them apart so that if one of them ever went rogue then the other could shut them down.

"We have a complicated relationship." Claire told the Doctor before getting up from her chair and told him. "I'll speak to my supervisors and we'll see about where we go from here." And with that she left the room.

Walking up the corridor Claire opened the door where the Doctor's companion was waiting. The young woman she could tell by the anxious look on her face about her friend. Not scared for herself but for him curiously Claire sensed from her mind which she was projecting clearly worried about her friend and subconsciously projecting. Claire would never normally read someone's mind unless she really had too or if she was given permission. Clara was terribly worried about what they might do to the Doctor but the easy smile Claire was giving her seemed to ease her although she was judging how real it might be showing that being in this position was either a regular occurrence or common enough for it have happened recently. Claire sat down and asked as she reached for the steaming tea pot before she asked Clara.

"Tea?" Clara answered back with a neutral tone.

"Please, just a touch of milk no sugar." Claire nodded and poured her a cup just like she had asked before pouring herself the same. Claire handed Clara her cup and told her with a grin.

"Please, I must say when we have uninvited guests on this ship they are usually shooting at us so we are hoping that we might all be civil on this occasion. Your friend and I just had the most enlightening conversation." She said hoping to relax Clara who asked her own question with a strong childlike curiosity burning in her eyes. Claire offered her a biscuit which she politely declined before asking.

"Just who are you people?" Claire told her not having any particular reason to lie.

"Explorers, that's all. Your arrival just caught us by surprise so we have to take precautions before we let you both go." And Claire started what seemed like an innocent chat to try and glean some details about the two strangers psychically or verbally and Clara started doing the same.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Once outside the moment the door closed she let out a sigh of relief as it had gone as well as expected before walking up the corridor where the rest of the senior staff was waiting for her. Camille gave her a sharp look for giving away information but Claire just returned the gaze calmly as she had only given him general information that was really of no major use.

"So?" Kate Todd asked and Claire replied.

"I don't think they mean us any harm, certainly all I could sense was a certain level of suspicion and curiosity and I have to say their story about landing here accidently makes sense. If he and his partner were trying to spy on us or sabotage the ship with a method of travel like they used they could easily have landed in a quieter area of the ship, dropped a bomb and left before it went off or planted a virus in the computer." Her argument was logical but what she suggested surprised them.

"Let him and his companion wander. Keep them out of vital areas but we might gain some more information by observing them."

"That's just great letting some complete strangers wander around the ship." Rush remarked sarcastically but Claire gave him a glare and told them.

"He's too strong willed to crack under interrogation and all we would do is make ourselves the villains in his eyes. Best to show trust if we are to receive it." Claire told them. Camille looked uneasy but nodded.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The crew watched the two newcomers with guarded suspicion as they moved amongst them. The Doctor in turn watched the soldiers with distain as he sat in the mess hall. The civilian scientists were not treated much better as he gave them the look an adult might an idiot child that was trying their best at something but ultimately futile. Clara sat at the same table looking around and asked her difficult friend.

"So what is going on here?" She hadn't really been told anything when she was questioned and was curious as to what was going on.

"Stargate Command, also known as the SGC." The Doctor started as he picked at the bowl of soup he had been given stirring it without really caring as to the contents. "In 1996 a group of scientists working for the United States government discovered how to use a stargate they found to dial other stargates across the galaxy. Since then they've been using it to explore space and getting into fights all the way." It had taken him a while but after Claire Williams had explained who they were to him the Doctor had remembered details he had heard about them from the different places he had visited. They had gotten Earth into no less than four interstellar or intergalactic wars since 1996 over three galaxies two of which were still going on! Why could humans do nothing peacefully? He thought to himself in annoyance. On their first trip through the gate they had ended up killing the Supreme Goa'uld System Lord and on the second and third made themselves enemies of all the Goa'uld resulting in a highly destructive war across the whole of the Milky Way galaxy.

"Oh." Clara said surprised before asking. "Will they just let us go?"

"Probably." The Doctor said taking a sip of his soup before pushing it away in disgust. "This is horrible, I really should go and try one of George IV's banquets again."

"Then why are they just letting us wander?" Clara asked her own soup forgotten, while she found the food rather bland herself she did not feel the need to go to a banquet of a king that had been known to serve up to sixty courses of European cuisine.

"They want to observe us, see what we do. Let's get back to Tardis and get out of here so I can get rid of this awful taste in my mouth." The Doctor told her before he got up and left his nearly full bowl on the table and with a sigh Clara quickly got up to follow him back to the Tardis. Feeling the eyes of the crew all the way they soon arrived in the gate room and without hesitating the Doctor clicked his fingers and opened the doors before strolling into the large control room with its comforting hum and lights. The moment Clara entered the Tardis the Doctor clicked his fingers again and the doors slammed closed as he went to the controls and started flicking switches and turning levers. He and Clara both expected the noise of the ship dematerializing only to hear instead the engines whining as if struggling. Frowns formed on both their faces as the Doctor urgently started flicking switches, twisting nobs and turning levels only for the engines to eventually stop trying to leave. Both stared at the centre column in concern before Clara asked.

"What's happening? What's wrong?" The Doctor's expression of worried surprise didn't reassure her any more than his words.

"I don't know, something is holding the Tardis down, preventing it from reaching the vortex. Until whatever it is has gone, the Tardis can't move."

"Could they be doing that?" Clara asked wondering if the crew of _Destiny_ were responsible.

"Not a chance." The Doctor said having closely observed the humans on this ship and although they operated the Ancient ship surprising well they didn't have a clue how to stop the Tardis. His frown increased before he told his assistant. "We need to find the source of this before we can do anything."

"Right then." Clara said turning around trying to remain positive. "Best get out there." She walked back towards the door of the Tardis when she turned around saw the Doctor staring at the centre column with wide eyes, feeling concerned at the strange look on the normally confident face she asked. "What's wrong?"

The Doctor did not answer her at first which worried Clara all the more. He was lost in thought for nearly half an hour as a strange feeling came over him, like an echo over a long distance was reaching out to him. He could not describe what he was feeling precisely but that was the closest he could get.

"You're right." He said shaking his head. He joined her at the door and exited the Tardis finding a squad of marines led by their stone faced Sergeant Greer and Camille Wray the ship's commander in front of the doors giving him angry stares.

"What have you done?" Camille asked sharply. The Doctor and Clara where puzzled at the sudden aggression. Even before when they had suddenly appeared the reaction had been one of suspicion and surprise not anger.

"What do you mean?" Clara asked with concern, with the Tardis unable to move they were stuck on this ship for the time being and would be in a very bad position if the crew got angry with them. Greer answered her question with his normal cold and detached voice that revealed nothing of the suspicious anger beneath the surface.

"The gate won't dial." He said and Camille then said with clear distrust on her face. They had just tried to dial Earth for a scheduled check in before heading off at hyperspace towards a star cluster they had decided to check out when they had discovered both the stargate and hyperdrive would not engage. The science team were tearing their hair out looking for an explanation but as of yet they couldn't find one.

"And the hyperdrive won't engage. What did you do?" She asked again sharply leaving the Doctor and Clara at a loss. Whatever force was grounding the Tardis was also affecting _Destiny_ and the ship's own stargate as well. While the Doctor knew that such things were possible he realised that to affect all three at once required immense power and scientific skill and wondered what or who could be doing it, preventing his ship from dematerializing into the time vortex and also stopping _Destiny_ from leaping into hyperspace or its stargate establishing a wormhole to another gate.

"I haven't done anything." The Doctor said staring down the woman without blinking which even through her suspicious weariness Camille felt intimidated by. "Whatever is stopping your stargate and hyperdrive from working is affecting my ship too. I can no more leave than you can." He told them confusing them and defusing their anger somewhat which was what Claire found when she came in moments later.

"Is there anything you can do with the hyperdrive?" Camille asked hoping that their resident miracle worker could do some of her scientific magic but Claire only gave a shrug and told her exasperated.

"I can't do anything with the hyperdrive because there is nothing wrong with the damn thing or the stargate! There is nothing wrong with this section of space either. Whatever is affecting the ship, it is undetectable as far as I can see." Claire said but then added with a more hopeful note. "However the FTL drive is working just fine, so we aren't immobilised but without hyperdrive it will take two months to get back to Earth if we can't get the hyperdrive working again or find another stargate." Claire told them as unfortunately they were out in the far reaches of the galaxy right now. Claire was hiding her own anger and distress at the situation behind a mask of other feelings. She was getting really worried about how long she was going to be away from her girls. This is only supposed to be a couple of days of implementing a few upgrades and taking a chance to catch up with old friends. Now Claire was starting to feel a sense of déjà vu as they were facing a long trip home if they couldn't find the solution to their predicament. But this was especially difficult as they didn't even know what the problem was.

"Great." Camille exclaimed, what had started out as a weird day was quickly going downhill. Now she was faced with telling this crew that they might be facing a two month trip back to Earth. Thankfully it was nowhere near as bad as when they had first step foot on this ship and they could stop at planets with stargates to get in contact with home but it was still an inconvenience as without hyperdrive it would take far too long to get around the galaxy. Her decision made she told Claire. "Set course for Earth."

"Aye sir." Claire said with weary resignation and the troops that were in the room looked as annoyed as Camille felt. Greer who had not let the two newcomers out of his sight all the way through this conversation lowered his rifle slightly but it was still ready to swing up again at a moment's notice.

"Well then." The Doctor said coming right up to Camille, uncaring at the rifle that Greer pointed at him. "If anyone will find out the cause of this, I can so if you'll excuse me. I'll be on the bridge." He said despite his worry at the Tardis being grounded by some unknown force he was secretly excited at getting a look at Ancient technology from one of their earliest incarnations. He strolled out of the gate room as confident as a man could be while Clara just shook her head and counted quietly.

"One…Two…Three." The moment she reached three the Doctor peered back around the open door and looked at the humans inside looking a bit sheepish.

"Where is the Bridge?"

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Clara left the gate room to return to the Mess Hall to try and get something to eat. She hadn't had anything in the last couple of days and running away from evil robots on the planet Dusk had left her famished. Her own bowl of tomato soup had been left untouched in the mess when the Doctor had flounced out. When she walked in through the door she saw the bowl was long gone and turned towards the galley hoping that she might be able to able to get something from that nice Airman Darren Becker. He saw her as she walked in and with a knowing smile handed her a tray. On it was a fresh bowl of soup and a side of bread, she gave him a warm smile and thanked him before going over to sit on the nearest table. Around her it was much quieter as most of the crew had finished their meals and gone to their duty stations. She was alone except for Becker who disappeared back into the galley leaving her without anyone else around. She felt a bit lonely as she picked up her spoon and took a sip of the hot soup. Perhaps it was rather bland but certainly still edible perhaps just not up to the Doctor's high standards that came with access to all the food that time and space had to offer. She was about to take her second sip when three young women walked into the mess hall. Becker reappeared with trays of fresh soup and bread for them and greeted each of them warmly. Clara had noticed that there was a subtle divide in the crew, not a military versus civilian thing but the crew that had been here longer distanced themselves slightly from the more recent additions to the ship's company. She had overheard some of the newer crewmen complaining about it earlier. Nothing overt just general complaining that the older ones seemed to have the more interesting jobs around here. These three were probably older members of the crew judging by the way Becker greeted them. There was a brunette a bit younger than Clara but an inch or two taller wearing a purple camisole and black skirt, a red head again younger than Clara wearing a rough leather outfit and bringing up the trio was a taller brunette that looked about Clara's age wearing military fatigues over a very curved but muscular figure.

They looked over to Clara and the teacher from Coal Hill School thought for a moment they were going to go for another table and her heart dipped till it rose again when they came over and sat around her.

"Hi. I'm Clara." She said introducing herself with a bright smile. The three other women looked at her blankly for a moment before smiling back perhaps not as intently but smiled nonetheless and the older brunette reached out her hand. Clara took it and felt the other woman's strong grip and they shook hands.

"Captain Vanessa James." She told Clara before turning her head to face her companions. "Chloe Armstrong and Ginn." The other two women nodded before taking a sip of their soup.

"I had a boyfriend who was a soldier once." Clara said hoping a random comment might break the ice. She felt a painful pang in her heart as she remembered Danny Pink but she managed to remain composed despite feeling the moisture gathering in the corner of her eye.

"Me too." Vanessa said with an amused look while Chloe and Ginn smiled. Chloe decided to ask the next question as she took a bite of her bread.

"Where do you come from?"

Clara answered with pride. "Blackpool, Britain." The other three women looked a bit surprised given how the woman and her friend had arrived they had expecting them to be from another planet.

"I've never been there. What's it like?" Ginn asked, she had only ever set foot on Earth once and never in this 'Britain'.

"Nice enough, there are some great rides there." She said thinking of the roller coasters or the big tower that she had seen nearly every day when she was living there.

"And your friend?" Vanessa asked as she continued eating. Clara knew they were fishing for information but saw no harm in telling them.

"Another planet, but he travels a lot so I suppose the Tardis is home to him." She briefly recalled all her experiences with the blue box specifically the early days when the machine had done all it could to make her life a misery remembering the incident with the holographic leopard while she was in the bathroom specifically.

"Some of us feel the same about this ship." Chloe said remember all the times she had had here, good and bad. But despite all that she had come to see the ship as home, everyone that had come from Icarus had. The newer members of the crew didn't think that way so maybe that was the reason for the divide that had formed in the crew.

With the ice now broken, the four women began chatting away.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

On the Bridge the atmosphere was nowhere near as harmonious. The members of the science team sat or stood around the front consoles while the Doctor and Rush stood on opposite sides of the room staring daggers at each other. Testosterone filled the room as each man glared at the other for dominance and neither was willing to back down.

"You have no conception of the complexities of this work!" The Doctor snarled at Rush who in turn shouted back.

"You are an overstuffed peacock strutting around like you own the place and like you know better than anyone." The Doctor didn't waste any time snapping back.

"Well you see that is strange for you to say that with your limited intelligence and oversized ego."

The other scientists moved their heads from one man to the other as each new insult was spoken like they were watching a tennis match. Eli walked into the room and saw the intense exchange of insults between the two men and very quickly made their way between them to stand next to Brody on the other side. The two men didn't even acknowledge his presence as they continued spilling verbal abuse.

Eli turned to his co-workers and asked feeling like a spectator at a tennis match.

"How long have they been shouting at each other?" Lisa checked her watch.

"About twenty minutes." She answered with disinterest in the shouting between the two men.

"What are they arguing about?" Eli asked as he watched the two men continue to argue. Volker just shook his head before Brody told Eli the reason for this shouting match.

"To cut a long story short they both want to sit in the big chair." Looking intently at the centre command chair.

"That's all?" Eli asked amazed as the insults kept getting dirtier.

"Yeah." Volker confirmed as he lent back against the wall. All of the members of the science team that were present continued to watch as the two men refused to back down. A couple more minutes past before Claire had had enough of the bickering and leapt to her feet and screamed at them in her loudest and most stern tone.

"SHUT UP!"

Immediately both men went quiet while the other scientists there looked at her in surprise before she walked over to the centre chair and sat down causing both men to open their mouths like they were about to speak when she stopped them with one of her sharpest glares before telling them without shouting this time.

"Stop banging your heads together like a pair of Neanderthals and get to work!" Claire snapped at them. "Rush you work with Brody and Volker, Doctor you work with Lisa and Eli while I work over here. Everyone happy. Good." She said ending the conversation and going straight to work without giving the two men chance to respond. Rush conceded without a word and went to work with the two men he had been paired with. The Doctor rather sulkily said under his breath as he went to the console to join the two he had to work with.

"I knew a Neanderthal once. He was a lovely chap."

Claire was shaking her head, feeling the annoyance from both men who were acting like immature children and was wondering if maybe separating them into different rooms might be best when suddenly the ship's proximity alarm sounded. Everyone looked up from what they were doing to seek out the source of the disturbance. Claire's hand instinctively hit the shield control button which was lucky as mere seconds after they had risen they were pelted by blasts of red energy. The ship shook from the impacts, some crewmen were knocked to the floor while others gripped onto whatever was in reach to stay upright. On the bridge the people clung to the consoles as several impacts struck the ship's shields. They looked out of the window and saw a dozen little spherical ships probably big enough to hold two people maximum swinging around the ship. Only one person there recognised the ships and who was flying them.

"Sontarans." The Doctor proclaimed.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

 _I really hope whoever is reading likes the start of this story. Please review to give me some feedback._


	2. Chapter 2

_I do not own Doctor Who or Stargate Universe_

 _Mentions of the Big Finish Doctor Who Audio episodes_

 **Chapter 2 – Messages**

The ship was rocked by the energy blasts as the Sontarans kept up their attack. Clara who was still in the mess hall was getting to her feet when the ship shook with a particularly harsh impact. She lost her footing and fell forward hitting her head against the table.

"Clara!" The other three women at the table said as they carefully as possible moved Clara into the open allowing Chloe to take a careful look at her head which was bleeding badly.

"Skull fracture." Chloe said with near certainty, she would need an x-ray to be sure but her medical training told her that she should expect that much at least given how hard she had hit the table. "Let's get her to the infirmary."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

On the bridge the Doctor remained completely unaware of the fact that his best friend and moral compass was being taken the infirmary to be treated for her injuries specifically a serious head wound. Gripping the chair she was sitting in Claire detected a transmission incoming. She put it up on one of the screens that dropped down from above the forward three consoles. On it appeared a strange squat being in blue coloured armour. It looked like a potato with eyes and a mouth put inside a space suit.

"Puny primitives." The strange creature said to them its small eyes filled with pride and its voice filled with condescension. "Surrender and prepare to be incinerated for the glory of the Sontaran empire." The Doctor just shook his voice with exasperation and said in a deadpan tone.

"Great just what the universe needs, a whole race of Grumpy."

Eli added with some nervousness in his voice but he covered it mostly with his dry wit.

"Great its attack of the potato people."

Brody turned to the Doctor and asked him with concern.

"Who are they Doctor?" The Doctor didn't miss a beat before telling the normally humourless engineer.

"The Sontarans are a cloned race. They have been fighting a war with a shapeshifting jellyfish like people called the Rutans for over fifty thousand years in a state of almost permanent deadlock, they fight but no one side can get a foothold so they just keep killing each other and it has a long way to go yet." He said knowing that these two races were going to keep fighting for at least ten more millennia yet.

"Fifty thousand years!" Eli exclaimed not getting how a war in space could go on that long without one side or both being wiped out.

"Do they even remember what started it?" Lisa Park asked while she absorbed the information herself. Everyone even Rush gave the Doctor their full attention.

"No, in fact it has been so long that they don't even know where it started never mind how it started. Kind of idiotic to say the least." He told them with ridicule.

"So they are a fighting a war that has been going on for 50 millennia, has cost presumably trillions of lives and have no idea of how it started?" Volker asked with disbelief that any race would go on with such a big war without even a clue as to what started it. Rush was just shaking his head in the stupidity of such a thing. But the Sontaran on the screen repeated its earlier message looking annoyed at them all forgetting he was there.

"Surrender and prepare to be incinerated for the glory of the Sontaran empire." The crew and the Doctor all turned back to face him and Rush told him.

"Well if you want us to surrender then shouldn't you say 'Surrender or be incinerated'?" Rush said with mockery in his voice as clear as day. The Sontaran took a moment to process what he had said before replying with a slightly modified version of his earlier message.

"Well surrender or be incinerated for the glory of the Sontaran Empire." The crew however had lost their anxiety by now and Claire asked told him.

"Do you have any reasons in particular why we should surrender?" She asked with a smirk on her face. The Doctor came up to her chair and whispered in her ear.

"The type of fighters that the Sontarans are using are unmanned short range variants of the long range pods. They need a power source on a mothership close by but it's probably cloaked so look for any disturbances in subspace in the immediate area." She nodded ever so slightly and started accessing the ship's sensors and began scanning the subspace around them looking for the mothership like the Doctor had said. The Sontaran meanwhile stumbled as he tried to think of reason why the crew of the _Destiny_ should surrender quickly falling back on the party line that he had been fed since his hatching.

"Or you will be incinerated for the greater-" He was cut off in mid speech by Eli who finished his line with mocking grandness.

"The greater glory of the Sontaran Empire." Brody then gave the Sontaran a sly smile before telling asking him.

"Yes but what if you can't incinerate us then what?" The rest of the people on the bridge smiled as the Sontaran struggled to come up with something.

"You err." He said very unsure of himself as the threat they always gave turned out to have no effect on these people. While he stumbled over his words the sensors pinpointed the disturbance in subspace caused by the wake of the reactor on board the mothership. Claire smirked before she deployed the ship's main weapon and locked it on that spot before firing a burst. The large bolt of blue energy struck the vulnerable mothership. Its cloak immediately failed as the hull began collapsing. Unable to deploy its protective shield while invisible the high powered blast from _Destiny_ had torn through its very heart. The image of the Sontaran on the screen was cut off as the mothership exploded while the fighters around them all lost power and began drifting like puppets with their strings cut. The Doctor grimaced at the act of destroying the mothership but knew that with the Sontarans there was no negotiating it was kill or be killed. He didn't agree with it himself but it wasn't his choice to make.

Camille and General Young finally showed up on the bridge and asked looking highly concerned.

"What's happening? We were just in the lift and the ship started shaking, we just had to climb to the bridge from the next deck down." They said, the attack had shorted out the lift on route so they had had to climb the rest of the way. Claire and Rush both looked over to Brody who sighed in resignation before telling them.

"I'll get on it." He said walking past them to go and repair the lift. Claire turned to the Doctor and told the two highest ranking personnel in the room.

"He just saved the ship from hostile aliens. Thank you Doctor." She told him with a smile. The gratitude surprised him but it was nice he thought to himself.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Once the lift had been repaired the Doctor headed immediately for the infirmary when he heard that Clara had been hurt. He set a blistering pace through the ship that a normal human would find it nearly impossible to match. He arrived as Clara was being prepared by TJ to be put in a Medella bath.

"Are you sure she'll be alright?" The Doctor said with concern as he looked at his injured impossible girl. The gash at her temple prominent on her face even though it had stopped bleeding. A quick x-ray had confirmed a skull fracture and the Doctor looked at his companion with fear for her wellbeing. Any who doubted the warm and caring hearts that beat inside the Doctor's chest would be convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that he cared as he gently brushed Clara's hair back from her forehead. TJ smiled at the tenderness displayed by the man that had what one crewmember had described 'attack eyebrows'. She gently put the breathing mask on Clara's face before turning to face the Doctor.

"Yes, this stuff heals nearly any injury in moments and it's been tested rigorously before we'd use it on anyone. Here you can monitor her life signs on this." TJ said gesturing to the display at the top of the tank. Without giving him time to delay further she activated the tank which began filling with the blue gel like fluid that they had acquired from Novus. The straps held Clara to the bottom of the small bath as the fluid submerged her completely and prevented her from floating. She could still breathe thanks to the mask attached to her face. The Doctor watched amazed as the gash on Clara's forehead started healing quickly before his eyes. On the display he saw the skull fracture begin to repair itself at an unbelievable rate like it would naturally but at a hundred times the speed. Within minutes there was no trace of any injury on the human woman in the tank and TJ checked the readings before disengaging the tank and letting the fluid drain out to be filtered clean before they could use it again. TJ reached over to Clara who was still damp from the bath and took off the oxygen mask so Clara could breathe normally and then removed the straps so that they could move her to another bed freeing the tank in case someone else needed it. The Doctor didn't wait for TJ to help as he lifted her out of the tub and carried her to a clean bed. He took out his sonic screwdriver and began scanning Clara's head to see if she was truly okay. She had only just re-joined him after the incident with the dream crabs and he didn't want to lose her again. Whatever differences or arguments they might have had since his regeneration she had stayed at his side and brought him back down to Earth so to speak when he needed it. He was astonished to see that she was just sleeping peacefully and gel they had used had healed all her physical injuries in no time at all. He was disturbed from this when a woman with an Irish accent spoke from behind him.

"Sorry but you are him aren't you? The Doctor?" The woman asked and when he turned around to demand for her to go away the Doctor was struck momentarily speechless when he whipped around and saw what appeared to be a brunette version of Molly O'Sullivan, a companion during his Eighth incarnation who had gotten him through the dark time after the death of two of his companions Lucie Miller and Tamsin Drew not to mention the loss of his great-grandson Alex which had nearly broken him and Susan his granddaughter. Molly's loss later due to the machinations of the Master and the Daleks had been yet another blow in the build up to the Time War that had set him on the path to becoming the War Doctor. While he was sure that he had never come here with Molly back in his eighth life he realised that this wasn't his old companion but rather someone that looked like her. She didn't have dark eyes like his Molly had this woman in front of him had warm blue ones, she also didn't have the blonde hair that his late companion had had but rather the aforementioned brunette strands. So he was about to ask her name when she beat him to it.

"I'll take that as a yes." She said with a sad smile. "You used to travel with my great grandmother, the original Molly O'Sullivan right?" She asked looking unsure. She had heard the family stories about the Doctor and all the strange, wonderful and terrible things that the original Molly O'Sullivan had seen. She had doubted them like all her family had at first but when the alien invasions had started happening so publically a few years ago like the alien ship crashing into Big Ben or the space ship over London that had made everyone stand on the roof she had seen her great-grandmother's stories in a new light especially when the Daleks had appeared over Canary Wharf and when the Earth was moved. Just like she had described them and just as callous too.

"Yes I'm sorry about what happened to her." The Doctor said unsure of what to tell her. It was rare that he had to face the family of companion that was killed, the last time after Donna Noble's sort of death when he had to erase her memories was bad enough. He was surprisingly lucky in one regard, his companions were very rarely killed for which he was obscenely grateful.

"Oh she lived a great life Doctor." Molly told him proudly thinking of her great-grandmother. "She helped so many people in Ireland who couldn't afford medical treatment and she raised a big family. She had no regrets." Remembering the journals that her great-grandmother had left behind detailing her life.

"I'm glad." He said happy that the great-granddaughter of his former companion didn't hold him responsible as so often was the case when someone around him died.

"So" Molly said with a smile now feeling that the ice was broken. "How about some lunch while your young lady friend sleeps?"

"As long as it isn't soup." The Doctor said with a distaste at the memory of the stuff they had been serving earlier causing Molly to laugh making the Doctor forget his dislike of the soup remembering his Molly's laugh and how like her great-grandmother this Molly nearly a century apart was.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

While the Doctor told Molly and some of the others in the mess hall stories about his adventures with the former's great-grandmother enjoying the chance to talk with such a receptive audience, Claire sat a table across well able to hear but not wanting to join them. Her mind was trying to make sense as to why the Tardis had seemed so familiar to her? Had she met the Doctor before somewhere? It would have had to have been a long time ago for her usually perfect memory to struggle like this. She got up from her table and left the mess hall and without really realising how she got there she arrived in the gate room where the Tardis was still waiting. She walked up to the door of the blue box and looked around to check that she was alone before asking the box although not expecting an answer.

"How do I know you?" She asked but there was no response from the box. She was starting to feel rather silly but then she felt something on her shoulder like a hand. She whipped around only to see no-one there and felt a humming in the air that could only be coming from the Tardis so without knowing what she was doing again she put her hand carefully on the wooden panels and the moment she made physical contact with the surface of the police box it was like opening the flood gates as a memory from the darkest time in her life flooded into her conscious mind.

 _Flashback…Earth North Wales 1992_

 _The young six year old Claire was cowering in a cold, dark and damp cell with only some straw to keep her warm. She didn't remember how she got here but one moment she was on the hill overlooking the sea and the next moment she was in this cold, damp and dark cell that would have looked right at home in a medieval castle._

 _She wanted to go home she would rather have her grandmother shouting at her then be stuck in this horrible place. Then she was surprised to hear the door opening and was afraid that it might be the green jellyfish people come to take her for more experiments. She dived into the pile of straw and held her breath hoping that they wouldn't find her. She shook as she wrapped her arms around her knees and tried to make herself as small as possible. The voices that appeared however were not the strange alien ones of the creatures that had taken her but four normal sounding ones._

" _I can't believe I actually thought that you could really take us somewhere quiet and peaceful for a change." One of the voices said. It was a woman but with an accent that sounded like that program her grandmother watched sometimes Neighbours or something. The angry shouting in the woman's voice made Claire shake in fear remembering how her grandmother shouted. She really did not like it when people shouted._

" _Now Tegan how was I to know that the Rutans were going to show up in North Wales in the late twentieth century." A man's voice spoke this time sounded annoyed and resigned but otherwise friendly. Another man's voice sounding younger than the first but impatient and sharp like the earlier woman's voice._

" _Well Doctor now we can look forward to a course of experiments with a side order of torture thrown in for good measure." His voice reminded Claire of her father when he was in one of his moods not as sharp but close enough to scare her all the more. But then another woman spoke and this one had a much calmer tone than the other one with an edge of sophistication._

" _It's pointless to complain about it now. We're here and I for one would rather not be used as some lab rat." She said which unknown to Claire was due to the woman's experience with the super intelligent rats in the underground bunker in 1983. She was about to ask 'The Doctor' if he had a plan when she saw a slight shaking in the pile of straw that was at the other end of the cell. Putting her hand up to stop her friends from speaking while she carefully crept over and gently pushed the straw back to find Claire who had pulled herself into a ball and looked away in fear. But the woman who had just spoken put a comforting hand on Claire's hand and held it gently._

" _It's alright, don't be scared." The calm lady said and Claire feeling less terrified at her gentle words looked up at the woman that was being so nice and her blue eyes met a set of brown eyes that held great kindness and sympathy but also pain in their depths although Claire wasn't able to see that. She had brown hair in ringlets down to her shoulders with a gently rounded face that was dominated by the kind smile she was giving Claire now making the young girl feel more at ease with her new cellmates._

" _A little girl!" The other woman said now seeing Claire for herself and now that she wasn't hiding Claire could see her and the men in the room too. The angry woman was tall with short brown hair and dressed like someone expecting to be in the tropics than North Wales. She had more angular features than the woman currently trying to coax Claire out of the straw pile; good cheekbones and held herself very tall and proud. She looked at Claire with disbelief and her sharp words almost sent Claire back into the straw pile even if they weren't directed at her. "They take a child to experiment on."_

" _Oh yes." The Doctor said with a deceptive calm in his voice. He was dressed in cricket whites like the men on television did whenever Claire had seen a match that her grandmother had been watching. "The Rutans are nothing if not through in their research." The angry woman looked ready to say something before the Doctor spoke again now sounding angry himself at the jellyfish like shape shifters. "It's bad enough to take humans as test subjects in the first place, but now you really have crossed the line by taking children." He shouted at the room knowing that they could hear him. His young face was alight with rage as his eyes burned with fury. Claire was worried he might be angry at her too but the kind woman took a firm hold on her shoulders and gently pulled her out of the straw pile before telling the young girl as though she could read her thoughts as they sat next to each other on the floor._

" _It's alright the Doctor is just angry at the people that run this place, not at you." She said giving her another smile. "My name is Nyssa and this is Tegan, Turlough and the Doctor. What's your name?" She said introducing herself and those with her to the anxious girl who managed to say back._

" _Claire."_

" _That's a pretty name." Nyssa told her causing the girl to give a little smile._

" _Well then." Turlough said not giving the girl much notice, he had little experience with children and was more than happy to let Nyssa the experienced mother deal with the girl who looked ready to bolt back to her hiding space at any moment. "Shouldn't we get out of here? They won't wait long before starting their experiments." He said. Tegan now seeing how scared Claire was put on a smile to try and reassure her before coming over and telling her in as kind a voice as she could manage._

" _Don't worry sweetheart. We'll get out of here and get you home to your mum and dad, they must be worried sick." Tegan thought her words would have made the little girl feel better but was surprised when they had the opposite effect and Claire lost her smile and started crying with hot tears running fast down her face causing Tegan to move away while she and the two men in the room looked on in surprise while Nyssa acting quickly pulled the girl into a hug and started whispering soothing sounds in her ear._

" _It's okay." Nyssa said as she let the girl cry into her shoulder while Claire managed to tell Nyssa through her tears._

" _Dad killed mummy, it was my fault." She said causing all four of them to look at her in shock before she told them about how she had gone looking through her father's things and discovered his box of human fingers causing everyone in the room to look disgusted at the thought of what Claire's father had been doing. Then how she had told her mother and how her mother had desperately hidden Claire while trying to get the police around before he had found out but they had arrived moments to late and how Claire had seen her mother having the life choked out of her by her father. It had only been a few months ago but to Claire it might as well have happened yesterday. Nyssa her eyes full of sympathy tightened her hug on the distressed girl in her arms._

" _It's not your fault sweetheart." Nyssa reassured her while stroking her hair. "He was a bad man there was nothing you could have done." Claire's sobs eased slightly at Nyssa's words before Nyssa said quietly in her ear in a serious tone that was designed to make people listen with their full attention. "I know this won't help, this pain is going to be with you for a long time perhaps the rest of your life but that doesn't have to mean that it is the end of your life. You will carry the best parts of your mother inside you like I carry the best parts of my father inside me after he was…taken from me." Nyssa told her young charge who listened with eyes red from crying to every word. "You can use that pain to drive you forward not let it consume you but to become a source of strength in helping others. You have strength inside you that you can't even dream of. It is still raw for you right now but one day you will hope again." Claire nodded and started to fall asleep in Nyssa's arms exhausted from the emotional upheaval._

 _Flashback ends…_

After that things had become a blur, Claire vaguely recalled being carried by someone from the cell and into a blue box that she now recognised as the Tardis before arriving in a brightly lit white room with strange round things all over the walls after a lot of explosions. She remembered being dropped off at a police station and then being picked up by her horror of a grandmother. But despite her young mind blotting those events out from the emotional stress of it all she had still on some level remembered Nyssa's words and taken them to heart. Bringing herself out of her musings she looked at the wooden panels of the Tardis again and without taking her hand off the wooden surface raised her free hand and without knowing what she was doing clicked her fingers. The door opened and she heard the soothing humming that she remembered from her reawakened memories that seemed almost like a dream coming from the inside of the box and taking her hand off the panel Claire stepped inside.

What greeted her was incredible, a vast open space that should never have fitted inside the smaller outer casing but the scientific part of Claire already was generating theories on how it was possible. But she pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind as she marvelled at the strange interior space that she found herself in. It had multiple levels with her standing on the middle one where a large console with a large number of dials and switches went around a glass central tube with glowing rods inside. Around the edges of the centre platform there were two more consoles with a large reclining seat. Claire looked at the upper level where she could see a large black board and a number of bookcases which were lit by small circles of blue around the upper level and the neon orange light from the centre console leaving much of the room in shadow but it was a comfortable darkness light enough to see but dim enough to relax in. She walked up to the railing by the staircase that went down to the bottom level but did not go down there despite being intrigued by the door that apparently led deeper into the machine.

"So what do you think?" A Scottish voice said from behind her and Claire turned around slowly feeling guilty at intruding but still amazed at the sight around her and told the Doctor who was leaning against the door frame.

"Brilliant, the interior dimension is separate from the exterior with a bridge created at a point to allow entry and exit. Incredible engineering." She said with a wide grin the Doctor was a bit impressed at how accurate her assessment of the Tardis was whereas most would just settle for the 'bigger on the inside' comment that he had heard so many times he didn't think there were any more possible variations of the sentence that could remain to be said. She looked around with the wonder of a child as she slid her hand along the railing and then the centre console before turning to him and asking with a serious face losing her smile. "Did you know who I was when we met again?"

"I can't remember everyone I meet." The Doctor told her, with all the travelling that he did it was impossible. "But there are those that I always remember like my companions and close friends and when I saw you in that cell I knew that I would remember you although it took me awhile to realise you where the little girl. My fifth self was gentler perhaps than other incarnations I've had but his fury over the Rutans taking you for their experiments was something that is as clear to me now as it was then." The Doctor said taking a moment to look back down his long memory to the events in question. One of the few times when the fifth Doctor had lost his temper and he had made sure that nothing remained of the Rutan presence on Earth by the end of it. Claire then admitted something.

"When I touched this ship I felt its mind. In that mind I saw images of you all of you." She said confused but she had to ask him. "When you change does it hurt?"

The Doctor looked uncomfortable at the question but answered her with some discomfort as he remembered the occasions when he had had to regenerate.

"It always hurts."

Both of them stayed silent for a moment before Claire had an idea to change the mood. Smiling again she turned to the Doctor and asked him.

"So Doctor would you like to see the reason _Destiny_ was sent out by the Ancients 45 million years ago?" She asked him and saw from the glint in his eye that she had seriously piqued his interest.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"There you have it Doctor. A message from the beginning of the universe." Claire told the Doctor proudly as he looked at the data that the ship had spent millions of years collecting. The Doctor looked intently at the strange collage of blue and white with hints of purple. Rush who was standing nearby smirked when he saw the Doctor looking at it so intently.

"Which I'm sure means nothing to you." Rush said with his usual arrogance which was something Claire hadn't missed since leaving the ship but as she glared at Rush the Doctor ignored him and summed up with just his eyes and brain what they had needed computers to see.

"A pattern in the cosmic microwave background radiation." He said wiping the smile off Rush's face which brought a smirk to Claire's. "It is a message but it's more complex than any other message I've seen. I'll write a program to decode it. A couple of days and we should be able to see what it means." The Doctor said and without waiting for them to give him the okay to start he began working typing away at the computer at a furious pace which did not stop even when Camille and Young entered the room and Claire told them.

"The Doctor is writing a program for us that should decode the message that _Destiny_ was sent out to retrieve." Claire told them excited that the great mystery at the heart of _Destiny_ was finally going to be revealed. Camille and Young looked uncomfortable at the man they hardly knew having such unrestricted access to a computer while Rush looked annoyed at the high handed attitude of the Timelord. Young however got back to business.

"Well as nice as that is we are going to need to resupply soon. The ship's hydroponic gardens will support the crew for a while but we're going to need more drinking water and soon." The military man slipping back into his commanding role without even knowing it and before anyone could speak the Doctor spoke up again.

"Well I'm sure the trading post could handle all your needs." He saw not stopping work for a moment as he called up the same holographic screen that they had looked at when they had first boarded this ship and seen the long journey except now it showed a nearby planet which was no more than two days travel at FTL.

"Trading post?" Camille asked sounding intrigued.

"Yes it's a major hub of commerce for this sector, all the best freighters stop there." The Doctor told them. The four people in the room watching him all turned to face each other and then for three of them turned to Young who nodded agreeing it was the best bet.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

In the higher dimension where the ascended existed three beings who had moved beyond the physical world all watched the situation on _Destiny_ with great concern.

"It's going to take the Doctor no time at all to solve that message and you know it." Oma Desala said with her wise voice full of worry.

"We have to do something." Ganos said with scared determination but the Ascended version of Claire reminded them of the problem.

"The others won't let us stop this and you know it." She started thinking of a way around the rules or a way she could interfere without it being noticed before the message could be decoded. The potential danger that could be unleashed was beyond the imagination of all but a select few who had been involved.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Two days later _Destiny_ arrived at the trading post. On the bridge Claire sat at the centre console while Brody sat at the right and Lisa at the left. In the centre seat was General Young with Camille and Rush standing behind him leaning on the handrail. The Doctor was leaning against the far wall as the ship entered orbit and Claire told General Young.

"The local authorities are hailing." Lisa said from her console. General Young nodded and said.

"Let's hear it."

" _Unidentified vessel."_ A male sounding voice appeared on the communications system. _"Welcome to the Emporium. Please state your name and intentions."_ The voice requested. Everyone turned to look at Young who spoke.

"Emporium this is the Earth ship _Destiny_. We are hoping to trade for supplies if that is at all possible." Young said trying to be absolutely clear on their intentions so as to avoid confusion. Even with all his years in the SGC his actual contact with alien races was very limited often to cases of being shot at by them. The voice on the other end of the communications link suddenly became very jolly and said back with a booming laugh.

" _That my dear friends is what we are here for. I'm sending co-ordinates for you to come and beam on down. See you soon."_ The voice said before suddenly cutting off. Every looked surprised but turned to the Doctor. Camille asked him a very important question.

"What is valuable around here?" The Doctor put on his mental thinking cap for a moment before saying.

"Well practical metals used in construction or making tools are very rare around these parts so if you have any on hand they would do." The Doctor said and Rush asked him.

"What about Naquadah or Trinium?" The Doctor turned to them and said.

"Well if you have them on hand even better."

"Oh I think we have enough to get what we need." Claire said with a knowing smirk copied by the other people around the bridge except the Doctor who had no idea what they were talking about.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

They fired up the beam replicator and started replicating bars of the two valuable metals that they could use in trades with the local authorities. The Doctor refused to go down there saying it was their problem and to deal with it on their own. So General Young, Camille, Claire, Captain Vanessa James and Sergeant Ronald Greer were all going down there. They didn't bother with formal wear just their uniforms or in the civilians cases smart casual. They stood in the gate room with bags being held by Greer, Claire and Vanessa.

"We're ready." Lisa Park said for the control console and Young turned to face them all with a stern look on his face.

"Remember whatever you do, be polite and don't stare. We can't afford to offend these people. So whatever they look like don't insult them." He told the members of the away team who all nodded before he turned to Lisa and told her. "Do it."

The next thing they knew they were standing in a hall of some kind with large windows all around the room. The crew took their surrounding in carefully looking for their hosts but as of yet there was no sign. Feeling more confident the crew moved over to look out of one of the large windows that dominated the wall and saw to their amazement where they were.

"We must be eight hundred feet up." Camille said in shock as she saw the ground a long distance beneath them.

"Nine or more." Vanessa said nervously judging by the size of buildings beneath them. There was no building on Earth this tall, the only thing that came close was the eight hundred and twenty eight feet Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai and that was about a hundred feet shorter than this one. They were all broken from the incredible view when a lift that they had not noticed appeared in the centre of the room. They saw much to their astonishment although they all worked quickly to hide it a tall furry cat like man with a large muscular build appear. He wore a sort of belt and trousers but nothing above the waist. It was male at a guess but the moment he spoke they realised they were now face to face with same being that they had spoken to in orbit.

"Welcome to Emporium please what do you think of our view?" He asked proudly clearly meaning this was largely to impress visitors so Claire spoke hoping to appease their host.

"It is an incredible sight, we have no buildings like this on our home planet." She said honestly and the cat-like man laughed another booming laugh loving the compliment before he replied.

"You're too kind. Now please let's discuss these supplies you need and introduce ourselves I am Overseer Sino." He said sitting down on the ground so following suit they sat down on the floor which was hard and cold but not so bad they couldn't stand it.

"We need some water to refill our tanks as we have a long journey ahead of us." Camille said taking the lead before adding. "And somewhere our crew could get some shore leave would be much appreciated." The man cat looked at them with a big grin and from what Claire and Vanessa could sense of his emotions he was glad there was no hidden agenda he just wanted to get some new customers for his trading post.

"We were hoping these might do." Vanessa said pulling a bar of Naquadah and a bar of Trinium out of her bag and it looked like the Doctor was right when the man cat's eyes widened and his sense of joy lifted up more.

"How much water do you need?" The man cat asked.

They agreed to swap seven bars of naquadah and four of Trinium to get the water to refill the ships water tanks and also for the crew to be able to go down there to experience the trading post. It would be a fascinating experience as most of _Destiny's_ crew would have never seen anything like it. The crew were separated into groups of twelve so that they could be rotated back and forth between the surface and the ship. The first three groups to be going down stood in the gate room while Claire briefed them on what they would need to know when going down there. The Doctor and Clara stood in the background looking disinterested as they were used to places like the trading post all the time.

"When you are on the surface." Claire told the gathered crowd which included Kate Todd, Eli, Ginn, Chloe, Matt, Kathleen Scott, Greer, Camille Lisa Park, Brody, Volker, TJ and Young all wearing backpacks. "You are all expected to behave. You will encounter alien lifeforms down there and I will not stand for any xenophobia. Do your utmost not to insult anyone and be respectful especially as we are alone out here and if our hosts turn nasty we could find ourselves in really hot water and keep your communicators on you at all times. Keep calm and regardless of how the aliens you meet look be respectful." Claire said desperate to make that point, she saw the crew around her some of them getting what she was saying but a few not really getting it. Sighing that she would just have to hope for the best she moved on to the next part of the briefing that she would have to repeat in a few hours when the groups swapped over. "On the table beneath me you will see some bags you can take one each." She said pointing downwards towards the table that had been set up on the lower deck. The people moved over to take one of the medium sized bags which were surprisingly heavy and Claire explained.

"Inside each bag are slips of Naquadah and Trinium. The Naquadah is the darker metal while the silver ones of are Trinium, both are highly valuable on this planet so you can trade the slips for anything you wish to purchase. Now remember to be careful with anything you do touch and be especially careful with food or drink. Make sure that is it safe for humans before consuming anything." She said firmly her glare making even those older than her stand straighter. Noticing that the Doctor and Clara were still standing at the back Claire turned to face them and asked. "Doctor, Clara aren't you going to take a bag?" She asked and the two people in question surprising both of them but before they could say anything Claire added. "Until that ship of yours can move again, you are a part of this crew. So you get some shore leave too." Both of them looking pleasantly surprised walked forward and took two of the bags while Clara was offered a backpack by Kate while she took gratefully.

"So let's get going." Young said and the rest of the people in the room turned to Hunter Riley who was operating the beaming unit today. He would be going down with the next group so waiting till Claire had descended the stairs Hunter Riley activated the unit and the group disappeared in a flash blue light.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

When they rematerialized on the planet's surface and what greeted them was a truly wondrous sight.

The wide cobbled streets were bustling with people as they moved from the stalls and shops that lined the road. The variety of life for people that had never really seen much of non-humans before was truly amazing. Insects bigger than hippos bartering with cat people over objects that looked so strange they defied identification. Purple skinned creatures walking side by side with feather covered humanoids and so many other different alien species that it would have kept an exobiologist happy to the end of his or her days. As the group started to divide into smaller groups so they could investigate the strange sights around them they saw the amazingly vast range of things on display around them. Some had the look of a pets shop with cages of more alien creatures, others had racks of books or display cases of jewellery. Others had weapons displayed for everyone to see causing the Doctor's eyes to darken when he saw them and move to the opposite side of the street. From here the groups separated as they went to do some exploring.

Eli and Ginn spotted a tent that was selling lots of different pieces of technology and darted inside with Lisa and Vanessa following them. The variety of gadgets and devices around them was truly amazing. Eli's eyes were drawn towards one thing in particular device. The proprietor of the tent saw the interest in Eli's eyes and moved quickly over. Eli was so focused on the device that he failed to be disturbed by the fact that the man had four eyes.

"Are you interested in the anti-gravity pack?" The man with extra eyes asked and Eli nodded while asking.

"What does it do?" The proprietor said with a grin that would have given the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland a run for his money.

"It propels the user into the air and around by using gravity itself for thrust." Eli heard and his first thoughts were that it was a jetpack although it really wasn't.

"How much?" Eli asked.

Claire watched from outside as the crew moved around she saw them all darting from tent to tent determined to see everything there. She smiled as she went off herself. Camille and Young had given her the task of finding any useful technology that might exist here and acquiring it like for example the translation field that was being projected over the city otherwise they would have never understood the people around them. To that end she had a larger amount of metal to trade than the others.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Greer and a few of the men on the group down in the first group quickly stumbled on the leisure facilities that were available to those who visited the outpost. There were live matches of unknown sports, gladiator style fights, glowing fish doing incredible underwater dances, alien zoos, comedy clubs, public games of chess where the more you moved certain pieces the more electricity was coursing through it. All of those were interesting enough but soon the more randy men discovered what could only be described as a strip club. While Greer decided to give it a miss just in case his girlfriend Lisa found out the others had no trouble enjoying the sights that the establishment had to offer some of the females there so exotic they could have never imagined.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Six hours later the time for the 1st group to return to the ship and the second group to go down finally arrived. Using the communicators as beacons Hunter Riley contacted them all and once it was confirmed safe beamed them back to the ship. As they all arrived and the second group got ready to depart Claire got ready to deliver her speech about being on their best behaviour again while she stowed away her own purchases and watched the crew showing each other their own. Camille had got a special pair of ornate rings, one for herself and one for Sharon which she was planning to give her when she got back from Earth along with some matching jewellery. Kathleen, Chloe, Ginn, Vanessa, Lisa and even Claire herself had also been unable to help picking up some nice jewellery and some very nice clothing in a variety of styles and fabrics. Even Eli, Matt and Young had gotten some jewellery and clothes for the women in their lives but other more useful items had also been purchased. Matt had gotten himself a very cool set of cyber shades that changed their setting depending on the level of light they encountered with binocular features. Both he, Greer and Vanessa had also purchased a variety of weapons from alien swords to energy weapons while Vanessa like Eli and Lisa had bought a range of gadgets for them to study and put to use. TJ and Molly had also acquired several medical tools and supplies which they were very proud of.

Claire while she had got herself some new clothes and jewellery largely as it appeared that she was going to be here longer than the couple of days that she had planned but she had also acquired a lot of important technology and data for Earth. The Translator field was perhaps the most important but there was also star charts detailing areas of the galaxy that they had never visited which included information on the alien races that lives in those areas, technical and scientific documentation, samples of several alloys and chemicals that they had never encountered before and so on. Claire had even acquired an easy to conceal Quad Laser Deluxe and a device known as a time bangle. It was broken but supposedly it would allow the wearing to travel back in time a few hours if working and something Claire could not wait to examine. But more personally she had also bought four small gemstones and a small quantity of gold from which she was going make four necklaces; one with a ruby, one with a diamond, one with a sapphire and one with an emerald. One for each of her daughters which she would give to them when they were fifteen while the diamond necklace she would keep herself.

Once she had stowed away her items she went to brief the second group before they went down. The Doctor was meeting up with Clara in the Tardis to store away their own purchases.

"Finally some decent food." The Doctor said as he put the foods he had found down on the surface with a rare bottle of wine that he had acquired at a knock down price. He was really starting to think twice about not carrying money, everything seemed to go smoother when you had some on you.

"Decent for who?" Clara asked incredulously the smell of the food was so strong it almost made her want a peg to put on her nose. She herself had purchased some new clothes liking their fabrics and styles, she could always have just gotten something from the Tardis wardrobe but she had always preferred to have her own things. But then as he put her new outfits aside she smiled as she found what she had been looking for. She picked up a pile of alien books and special pocket watch in simmering blues and golds. She walked up to him and past them to the surprised Doctor. "Think of it as a late Christmas present. I hope you like them." She added looking suddenly uncertain of her choices.

The Doctor was momentarily speechless, he had not been expecting gifts but was touched at her thoughtfulness. The books were the biographies of Captain Alpha Beta the Third, known as one of the most prolific explorers and adventurers of all time. It was someone that the Doctor had always wanted to meet but never seemed to have much luck so reading the books would be the next best thing and the watch was a very nice time piece that he would love to add to his collection. He then remembered something he had found in the market and gotten for her. He pulled her and in the same vein as she had justified his present he turned and offered a small box saying.

"Merry Christmas." He said loving the surprised look on Clara's face. She carefully took the box from him and opened it. Inside was a silver helix bracelet with very elaborate styling Clara was stunned, it was beautiful. She carefully took it from the box so she could feel it with her own fingers. Holding it there for a moment she slid it onto her wrist were the Doctor revealed that it was more than just a bracelet.

"It's a personal organiser amongst other things." He said showing her that by tracing the special patterns on the bracelet which she had assumed were decorative it could activate different functions.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Later now sporting her new bracelet Clara decided to go and see the rest of her temporary shipmates. With half the ship's crew on the planet surface the mess hall was nearly deserted except for Vanessa James who was getting herself something to eat.

"Hello." Clara said and was rewarded with a slight smile and noted the female soldier was off duty with a cool black leather jacket and matching black leather trousers over a red silk-like t-shirt and black boots. Vanessa smiled at the newcomer to the ship and picked out a second bottle of cola throwing it to Clara who eagerly opened and took a sip of the fizzy drink.

"So enjoyed yourself down there?" Vanessa asked and Clara responded with a casual coolness.

"Oh a bit, what about you?" Clara asked back, Vanessa however unknown to the other woman was picking up on her sense of enjoyment about today that was nearly beaming from her.

"The same." She said in the same tone and sat down at one of the tables while Clara came over to join her. Clara being constantly curious asked.

"So how did you end up out here?" Vanessa smiled as she took a bite of her food before answering.

"The SGC handpicks soldiers who show commitment under fire and to be highly capable. I was chosen because I apparently have those qualities." She said. "For a chance to the see the universe, I jumped at the opportunity when they offered. The things I've seen on this ship are amazing, but terrifying at the same time." She stopped for a moment remembering the adrenaline fuelled rush but also the terror of all the times they had met the unknown on this ship as Clara looked on before she admitted something.

"When we first arrived here on this ship we all had our own agendas and a lot of misconceptions about who we really were. One by one they were pulled away till we could see ourselves for who we really are."

"I know the feeling." Clara said feeling the same emotions. "Joining up with the Doctor I have seen so many things that both delighted and terrified me. I lose a lot of simple notions about right and wrong and about who I was." She thought about how she had acted when the Doctor had regenerated into his current incarnation and almost cringed in shame at how judgemental and egotistical she had been.

Both women thought about how their experiences had changed them before they started chatting about the variety of amazing things they had seen.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

That night when the crew were on downtime after returning from the trading post, Claire who was still awake due to her Ancient physiology not needing as much sleep as humans decided to go and do some work in one of the science labs. She had finished her exo-suit project back on Earth and they were being added to all Earth ships when enough were completed. The Cloaking device project had also been completed and were being installed around the fleet but while Jennifer Hailey had made generating Zero Point Energy her own mission Claire had decided to start a new project. She was drawing up plans for a solar energy farm in space, based on the moon it would collect solar radiation as energy and then beam it down to receiver dishes on Earth so as to provide cheap and renewable energy for the planet easing the energy crisis. She was just about to enter the science lab when she heard a voice in her ear.

"Claire." It said with a strange echo but when Claire turned around she could see nothing. She was about to write it off as her imagination but then she felt something for lack of a better term grabbing her mind, her eyes rolled up and her body shook as images began pouring into her brain. She saw whole planets being wiped away all across the galaxy by some tremendous wave that seemed to swallow all of reality, slaughter on a scale she had never imaged by beings more powerful than nearly any other in creation. Then as quickly as it had started she felt whatever it was that had grabbed telepathically onto her mind relax and the images stopped, Claire fell against the door to the science lab and slid to the floor as the pain started to recede but then that voice that had spoken to her earlier spoke again with great insistence.

"Stop the message. It must not be decoded. If you don't it will mean the end of time." The voice said putting great pressure on Claire's mind making her head spin. Then as quickly as it had spoken Claire found she was alone again. She slowly got to her feet as she tried to make sense of it all but the message from whoever had just attacked her mind echoed in her mind so loud that it hurt. He knew that it made no sense but she had to stop it, she had no reason why but every time she tried to challenge it she felt the warning repeating in her mind. She got to her feet and began to run as quickly as she could to the bridge.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

On the bridge of the _Destiny_ , the Doctor had taken the time to stare out of the window while sitting in the command chair. Only Lisa Park and Brody were on the bridge with him and both had decided to let him sit in the big chair rather than have to argue. The Doctor was thinking about that sensation he had felt in the Tardis earlier somehow his mind kept returning to it. He had sensed there was something familiar about it but was unable to grasp what. He shook his head wondering if it was really that important when General Young, Doctor Rush and Camille Wray all walked onto the bridge. Seeing the Doctor there made Rush grit his teeth which secretly brought a small smile to Young and Camille's faces.

They were about to say something when a beeping sounded on the panel to the Doctor's right. He turned to look as did the rest of the people and told them.

"My program is finished." He said pulling up the now decoded message just as Claire made it onto the Bridge, she didn't even have time to shout out before the Doctor accessed the message. Instantly lines of strange code started appearing on the ship's displays and the controls stopped responding.

"What the hell?" Rush asked as he moved to the one unattended console and started typing furiously into the controls to get a response. "Nothing is responding. What have you done?" Rush asked turning to the Doctor along with everyone else in surprise and fear. The Doctor only managed to say in his own shock.

"It wasn't a message. It was a program that has now taken over this ship."

"To do what?" Young demanded going over to the Doctor and grabbing him by the scruff of the neck. But the Doctor could only tell him.

"I don't know." But then Lisa told the people there including Claire who was momentarily consumed with a mounting sense of doom.

"It's accessing the subspace transceiver and drawing power from all over the ship." The lights dimming slightly to prove her point. Claire finally shook off her sense of foreboding and moved forward to join Rush at the centre station where she noticed something rather alarming.

"The space around us is distorting." She said as the ship started shaking violently as the crew felt like they were being pulled in every conceivable direction all at once while being pushed inward at the same moment. The lights around them became streams of colour as the noise became so loud in their ears that they thought that they might blow their ear drums. Then as quickly as it had started it stopped. The people all over the ship who had just had possibly the most uncomfortable experience of their lives suddenly looked around to see that everything had gone back to normal except for the headaches that they all had. The people on the bridge or those that were close to certain windows all looked out to see a different planet to the one that they had seen before with a fading aura around just like the one they had just seen around them. While the Doctor just stared out of the window Claire moved over to navigation with Lisa and checked the ship's location against the available star charts. The discoveries she made shook her.

"We've moved our position, the ship is lost, there's no reference in the database." Claire said with great concern all the crewmembers on the bridge all started to look very distressed at the news. They were once again lost in the universe with no idea as to even what direction home was in. The Doctor however was mesmerized by the sight in front of him. The look in his eyes was one of incredible emotion. Seeing the look on his face and nearly being overwhelmed by the emotions that she was sensing from the Doctor, Claire looked around and saw the planet that had rendered him seemingly speechless.

It was much larger than Earth by several times judging from the instrument displays in front of them. It had the same colour as rust with areas of brown and grey from orbit but also there were large areas of volcanic activity in different places around the planet. An interesting enough looking planet but not overly so. Claire turned to face the Doctor and asked him.

"Do you know that planet?" He didn't seem to hear her at first and the crew looked on still caught in the feeling of helplessness at being lost. But eventually the Doctor finally pulled himself together enough to answer.

"It's Gallifrey." He said almost without any breath or turning to look her in the eye. "My home planet." Claire's eyes widened at that but before they could say anymore the ship shook with a violent impact causing small explosions all over the ship and fires to begin breaking out much to the surprise of the crew who were still trying to recover from the transference to wherever they were now.

"Incoming ships." Brody shouted as two saucer ships appeared from the upper atmosphere of the planet. The Doctor recognised those ships immediately and only had time to say one word.

"Daleks." His horror growing as the familiar ships came closer. His only conclusion for how they got here was they must have been in Gallifrey's upper atmosphere when the planet disappeared from the universe and been carried with it in a frozen state now unfrozen as the planet had returned to its native universe. But that didn't help with the situation they found themselves in now.

Missiles came streaking out from the saucers striking the ship before Claire managed to raise the shields but too late to stop three impacts. Claire armed the weapons and the turrets that were still online deployed and started firing at the Daleks. They got lucky with the first ship, still obviously damaged from fighting it had no shields to protect it and the main battery managed to find a knockout blow causing the reactor to explode consuming the ship. But there was no let-up in the sudden battle as the second Dalek ship closed into range to start firing its energy weapons as well as continuing to fire missiles. _Destiny_ with parts of its blackened and on fire clearly from the outside staggered under the hard punishment, all the way along the ship fires and explosions ripped through the compartments the crewmembers that were still able rushing to get out of the way. The energy weapons on _Destiny_ that were still working locked on to the Dalek ship and opened fire but they did not have enough power to penetrate its shields. The Infirmary on _Destiny_ was filling up with wounded people, some with horrible burns and others with terrible injuries from the explosions. Chloe, Molly and TJ were swamped up to their necks and had no time to help many of them. Greer, Kathy, Clara, Matt and Vanessa were struggling to move everyone out of the damaged sections while Eli was working with Volker and Ginn in the Interface Room to try and stem the tide of destruction before it spread too far into the ship.

On the bridge Camille was using a fire extinguisher to try and put out a fire near the back of the room. At the front Lisa and Brody were working furiously with Claire to keep the ship fighting while the Doctor worked with Rush to effect desperate repairs to several broken circuits that threatened if anymore went to cut their control of the ship's systems. Young sat in the command chair trying to think of any strategy that might allow them to turn this desperate situation around but nothing he could come up with had any chance of success. Brody was working his console furiously when an explosion caught him in the side of the face knocking him out cold. Camille dropped the fire extinguisher and went over to check him. He had a nasty cut on the side of his head but was otherwise okay. However the explosion that had knocked him out caused Claire some bigger worries.

"We've lost weapons." She shouted over the noise much to the worry of the General and Lisa.

"What are we going to do now?" Lisa cried out but the General had no answer to give her. Suddenly Claire had a flash of inspiration as she engaged the sublight to take the ship closer to the Dalek Saucer and set for a short FTL burst that would carry them towards the planet dialling up the power as much as she dared to intensify the energy wave that would be created by the jump.

"What are you doing?" She heard someone cry over the noise of the fire and the explosions but she had no choice and hit the drive button. The turbulence of the burst from the FTL drive hit the Dalek ship hard causing it to explode and _Destiny_ to come to shuddering halt nearer to the planet. The ship's crew breathed a sigh of relief at apparently being safe but it was short lived as warning alarms kept blaring on the two consoles still working. While Claire and Lisa worked their hardest to get the heavily damaged ship under control the Doctor found himself being hoisted against the wall by General Young and Rush while Camille did her best to help Brody.

"What the hell did you do?" Young snarled at him wishing that he had air locked the man in front of him when he had first arrived. Rush at his side looked just as angry mirroring his thoughts almost exactly as both men held the Doctor roughly. The Doctor however had faced far more intimidating enemies than these two men and did not lose his cool.

"The message was a program that told the Timelords to come back into this universe." The Doctor said without expression despite the glares from the two men that were restraining him. "They were at war with a race called the Daleks and I sent my homeworld to another universe to keep it safe. Those two ships must have been caught in the wake of the transference and carried with the planet. I had no idea." He told them looking sincere but right now neither Rush nor Young believed a single word that came out of this man's mouth. The moment he had accessed that message their entire world had been turned on its head and they needed to know what else there was going on, General Young was also furious at the deaths that he was certain had been caused as a result of that battle. He had been to the other side of the universe with those people and it cut him deep to know that he was going to have to write the letters to the families of lost personnel. Maybe it wasn't something he absolutely had to do but he felt he should. Camille cradling Brody's head looked over to them her own hair messed up from blood from a cut of her own at her temple but was otherwise fine. She too had some serious words waiting for the Timelord when they were in a more stable situation.

In the other parts of the ship Varro and the rest of the defectors from the Lucian Alliance were helping Matt and Vanessa move the people that had survived into more stable parts of the ship while Greer and Kathy moved the wounded to the infirmary. Then they were disturbed from this task when they heard groaning coming from all over the ship as the hull started to sag. Several more explosions happened as the ship started groaning louder and louder. Everyone started looking around fearfully at the noises.

One the bridge Claire found the cause for the groaning and her face froze in abject horror at what the ship's internal sensors were telling her. Lisa saw the look on her face and asked desperately.

"Claire what is it?" Claire gulped before telling her.

"The ship's structural support braces are collapsing. I guess those first four missiles did more damage than we thought." Claire said as the full implications of what that meant hit her and Lisa as well as Rush and the Doctor who heard her words clearly. They too looked fearful while Young and Camille not being that technically minded nevertheless picked up on the tension in the room and Young let go of the Doctor before turning to Claire and asked.

"What does that mean?" The look of fear in Claire's eyes was enough to clue him in that whatever was going on was very bad but what Claire said next let him know just how bad it was.

"The main supports to the hull are going, when they go the hull goes with it."

Camille and Young both then realised what she was saying but Camille had to ask Claire just to be absolutely clear on what was going to happen.

"The ship is going?" She tried to finish her sentence but couldn't so Claire finished it for her.

"To explode, yes. We have five minutes maybe before it goes." There was silence for a moment before suddenly in sank in and Claire woke up enough to start working. "We need to abandon ship. The Asgard beam is still working I can teleport us down to the planet."

"Do it." Rush, Camille, the Doctor and Young all said together. Claire quickly turned around and got back to work on her console while Young darted to the command chair and hit the internal communication button and spoke with great urgency.

"Attention all hands. The ship has sustained major damage and is in serious danger of exploding…so I'm ordering that we abandon ship." He said the last part reluctantly. All over the crew froze at the news. They all knew that for General Everett Young to be ordering they abandon ship they must in very grave danger. So quickly they started grabbing whatever supplies they could that were within reach while Claire started beaming everyone that was still alive down to the best possible landing zone she could find in this orbit. She and Lisa were taxing the unit as hard as they could dare drawing whatever power was left for the transporter. All over the ship the crew started disappearing in flashes of blue light, on the bridge the Doctor was about to say something when he too was transported. In a matter of minutes the surviving crew had been transported down to the surface leaving only Claire and Lisa still on board. Setting the automatic function Claire got to her feet with Lisa and they both stood stock still taking one final look at the ship that meant so much to everyone who had been a part of its journey before the flash of light took them away.

On the surface of Gallifrey the pair reappeared and joined the crowd on the planet's surface to stare up at the sky to see a massive explosion.

For a moment everyone was silent as they watched the sight in the sky that sent a spike of ice into their hearts. Eli was the first to speak and he could only find it in himself to say two words.

" _Destiny's_ gone."

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 _Thank you everyone who read this, please review to tell me what you thought_

 _The idea for a solar energy farm on the moon comes from Energy of the Daleks, a Big Finish audio drama featuring the Fourth Doctor and Leela._

 _Also in the Big Finish Audio series Nyssa re-joined the fifth Doctor for a while after Enlightenment with Tegan and Turlough. For her nearly fifty years had passed and she had a family._

 _Molly O'Sullivan was a companion to the Eighth Doctor in the Big Finish Dark Eyes series however the Molly that is aboard Destiny is her great-granddaughter named in her honour._


	3. Chapter 3

_I do not own Doctor Who or Stargate Universe_

 **Chapter 3 – Mount Perdition and Southern Gallifrey**

As everyone watched the explosion from the ground, they were silent. No one from _Destiny_ could come to terms with the ship's destruction. The Doctor looked around anxiously and breathed a sigh of relief at noticing Clara amongst the survivors. She was helping a wounded soldier named Becker. Concentrating on her for a moment the Doctor didn't notice as Young came up to him and punched straight in the face knocking the Doctor to his feet. Rush then picked him up and hit him again and other people from the ship's crew came up getting ready to lynch the man they held responsible for the destruction of their ship and the deaths of their crewmates. Clara hearing the commotion looked up in horror to see her best friend about to get beaten to a pulp by the grief stricken _Destiny_ crew. She moved to try to help but was held back by two enormous men.

"Leave him alone!" She screamed in terror but the men ignored her and prepared to beat the Doctor senseless when suddenly all of them were thrown to the ground by what felt like a very strong gust of wind. Clara feeling dazed managed to look up and saw the only person still on their feet was Claire Williams with her arms outstretched down the centre of the group looking furious. When one man tried to get to his feet he was suddenly pushed back down by another blast that came out of nowhere. The quick gesture of Claire's hand matched the movement that the man had felt so he didn't try to get to his feet again and everyone including the very surprised Doctor who was now sporting a black eye and Clara gave her their full attention as she said with great venom in her voice.

"What do you think you are doing? This situation is nobody's fault. None of us could have known what that message meant or that the Daleks would ambush us the moment we arrived wherever here is. We are not animals!" She said looking down at Young and Rush as well as the other men with great anger and disgust in her eyes shaming the men that had acted on pure impulse allowing their anger to rule their heads. Even now those men realised what they had been doing and shame crept in but none of this eased Claire's temper.

"Right now we need to focus on survival. There is no guarantee that anyone is going to help us, we have wounded and unless anyone noticed we are truly into unknown territory here. So get with the program!" Claire shouted the last few words making everyone hear her. Feeling the emotions of the group starting to cool Claire released her telekinetic hold on the group allowing them to their feet. She turned to Vanessa who thankfully had not joined in the mob attacking the Doctor and said to her in a sharp but quieter voice. "Come on Vanessa let's deal with the wounded to save medical supplies." Vanessa nodded looking uneasy at the strong emotions radiating off her friend right now. Anyone could have seen them with her expression but to a telepath it was worse as you could actually feel them. Vanessa nodded happy that her friend's anger was not directed at her as they went amongst the crowd treating the injured.

Young now feeling guilty offered a hand to the Doctor who considered rejecting it briefly but realising the men that had attacked him were just angry rather than hateful and now felt guilty as they realised what they had been doing the Doctor accepted the hand and was pulled to his feet. Young tried to say sorry but the Doctor held up his hand and went over to Clara who looked stricken at his black eye but he pulled her into a tight hug. Young felt ashamed of himself losing control like an animal and began scouring the crowd looking for TJ who was helping the wounded like an angel of mercy. He frowned at how he had let everyone down in his momentarily lapse before he straightened up and started to take stock of the situation and discovering how they were for weapons and emergency supplies.

Claire knelt down next to Brody who was still being held by Camille who looked momentarily scared of Claire at her display of power a moment ago. Seeing that Claire was in no mood to talk she decided not to say anything as Claire put her hand over Brody's injury and after a momentarily glow pulled it away leaving unbroken skin where the nasty cut had been seconds earlier. Vanessa meanwhile was dealing with Corporal Barnes who had a broken leg and was being supported by Matt and Greer. They lowered her carefully to the ground as Vanessa straightened out the leg and put her hands carefully over where the leg was broken so as not to hurt Barnes any more than she already was. Concentrating for a moment light emerged from her hands and travelled into Barnes' leg. A few seconds later it was done and Vanessa pulled away before telling Barnes who was looking surprised at how quick in had been to keep her weight off it for an hour or two before moving on to the next person in need of help.

As the group sat around in the field before they started to take note of their strange surroundings. It had always mystified some of them how so many planets were like copies of Earth on the whole. This planet however looked so different to anything they had seen before. The grass beneath their feet was red causing them look nervously at their feet for a moment before they concluded it was safe or something would have likely happened by now. The leaves on the trees in the distance were brightly shining silver while the sky over their heads was bright orange and two suns shining with snow-capped mountains in the distance in the opposite direction to the trees. It was without doubt the strangest and yet most beautiful world that any of them had ever seen and for a group of people that made their living exploring the galaxy that was quite an achievement. Camille decided to do a grisly duty but one that she had to do, taking a headcount so they knew how many people they had and how many they had lost.

Claire finally dealt with the injured amongst the rest of the group before coming over to the Doctor. Clara who ready to stand between them for a moment but the Doctor gently pushed her aside so he could stand face to face with his saviour. Claire gently put her hand to the Doctor's face and a brief glow of energy later removed her hand showing the black eye the Doctor had been given by Young had healed without a trace that it had ever been there.

"Anywhere else hurt?" Claire asked but the Doctor was made of sturdy stuff and had endured far worse in his life. So he told her.

"I've been hit harder believe me." He paused for a moment before asking her. "How do you have telekinesis and healing powers?" Claire chose not to answer him with her mouth but with her mind. She spoke the words telepathically into his mind.

'The powers of an Ancient Doctor.' She took a moment to smile at his surprised expression before continuing. 'A virus changed my DNA into that of an Ancient meaning I developed their powers. It has taken me awhile to get a handle on them but I think I'm making progress.' She said telepathically.

'Nice to know.' The Doctor said back with his own telepathy which caused Claire to blink in surprise but then smiled again before she left him to go over to the big circle in the centre of the group where their equipment and supplies where being placed so Young could get a better idea of what they had to work with.

"And that's it." Kathy said as she put her gun on the floor next to the other weapons. Seeing the alarmingly small pile at their feet the senior members of the crew who looked almost ill at the size of the pile.

"That's it." Young said with great concern in their voice. Camille and Rush both looked on from his side with TJ, Molly, Matt, Claire, Chloe, Eli, Greer and Kate. They all looked at the pile and adding it all up in her head Kate listed it vocally.

"Two Ancient Particle Magnums, Seven Rifles with full mags and two spare, three handguns with full mags and a spare clip each, four knives, a Quad laser Deluxe, two medical kits, 10 radios with no spare batteries, Matt's Cyber shades, Claire's Ancient PDA, four flashlights, a week of emergency rations and a day's worth of water." Kate said making them all feel sick to their stomachs, looking around the crew didn't make things any better. Most of them had burn clothing or were wearing little as they were caught during the ship's night shift.

"Fifty six people made it off _Destiny_. Fifty nine didn't." Camille said as she finished her headcount and the crew all bowed their heads in grief at the loss of over half the ship's crew, most of them had been new crewmembers but some of the original crew had been amongst the dead. But Young knowing that now was not the time to mourn took stock of the situation and saw the most immediate concern survival and gave his first order.

"Right then we need water and soon so get ready to fan out and look around, only use weapons when strictly necessary as when they are gone they are gone." The members of the military went to pick up their weapons and Claire picked up her modified Particle Magnum, Quad Laser Deluxe and PDA but then the Doctor came over and spoke to Young.

"General Young I know this place. We're in Southern Gallifrey and there was a river here but it dried up, but there are several estates towards those mountains. I'm saw that we can get help there." He urged the military man. Young stopped to listen and was intrigued at what the Doctor was saying and he turned to Matt who had taken one of the rifles and his special shades and shouted.

"Captain Scott."

"Yes sir." Matt shouted back turning to face his CO.

"Those shades of yours have binocular settings don't they." Young asked and Matt nodded as he walked closer to the General so Young gave his orders. "Check towards those mountains."

Matt nodded in surprise and slipped on his shades and pressed the side button like the vendor had showed him. Looking towards the mountains he could see a series of large buildings in that direction.

"There are a number of buildings sir." Young nodded and shouted out to all the people.

"Right we are heading towards some buildings that way." He said pointing in the general direction that the Doctor and Matt had shown him. So the group began the long walk towards the estates that the Doctor had told them were there. They walked in silence for the most part, no one had much to say as their situation caught up with them. Clara walked close to the Doctor who was the front of the group and saw the expression on his face. He appeared almost lost thought and wondering what was going on Clara asked him.

"What's up?" She was still worried after the beating the man had received earlier from the crew. The Doctor blinked back into the present and told her in a voice so quiet that only she would hear.

"I grew up here. I used to spend all day running through these fields with my…best friend." The Doctor paused for a moment as he saw in his mind's eye the Master or Missy whatever he/she was going by now as a small boy who had played with him for hours before continuing with his description of his youth to Clara. "We played all kinds of games. I learned some of the most important lessons of my life from a hermit that lived in those mountains." He said feeling quite nostalgic as he remembered the good times that he had had here before it had all gone so wrong.

"Oh." Clara said remembering the little boy she had seen in that dark barn, she had resolved not to tell the Doctor of her unexpected trip into his past. What he had been doing in that barn puzzled her as the barn had been nowhere near here but she shrugged it off as somewhere he must have moved to later. The Doctor continued pointing covertly to a small hill a short way off.

"One of my best memories is of my father and me laying on our backs as we looked up at the night's sky on a special day, a meteor storm." He said thinking back to that magical night. "It was a warm evening and the sky above us was dancing with light. Greens, purple, brilliant yellows." He told her causing her eyes to widen with wonder as she pictured the spectacular scene herself.

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The first manor they reached was not salvation as many had hoped. Its gardens which would have been magnificent if they were tended to were now overgrown and in disrepair. The manor itself looked alright but was dark and lifeless. They walked up to the door and not seeing a knocker or a door bell Greer knocked loudly on the door with his fist. They all waited a moment but nothing was heard, Greer got ready with Dunning to break down the door but when they tried both of them despite hitting the door with their combined full weight bounced off while the door held strong. Both men got to their feet ready to charge again when the Doctor surged forward and pointed his trusty sonic screwdriver at the door. Both marines looked at the Doctor with scepticism but were surprised moments later when the door swung open. The Doctor with a smirk moved forward with a grinning Clara at his heels. Following them with their egos as bruised as their backsides Greer and Dunning saw the inside of the Timelord manor. It was almost Roman in its design with carved pillars and marble floors with mosaic designs.

The group led by the Doctor fanned out into the manor. Creeping up the stairs with Greer was Lisa Park, They looked along the hallway they emerged in and saw the door on their right. Moving slowly and with great care, Lisa crept up to the door while Greer braced himself on the other side. Nodding to his girlfriend, Lisa pushed the door open so Greer come move in just like his training had taught him preparing for any threat that might be there only to be greeted by an empty room except for a bed in the corner with a wardrobe in the corner. The wardrobe had been left open but with no breeze it didn't swing very much. Apparently given the haphazard way the coat hangers were spread out on the bed whoever had lived here had left in a big hurry.

Dunning meanwhile had discovered the buildings kitchen but again there was no one there. As the crew moved through the building which was surprisingly big they found no one.

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The manor was confirmed to be deserted after a two hour search as were the other five manors that were close by and the sky began to darken with the approaching night. There weren't enough bedrooms for all of them and the General did not want to split the group up when they were in such unknown territory so they decided to sleep in the hall of one Edwardian style manor with blankets they had found. It was uncomfortable for all of them sleeping on the hard wooden floors but both Everett, TJ and Claire were unable to sleep anyway. They were thinking of their children back on Earth and wondering if they were going to see them again. The Doctor had reassured them and the others that the Timelords could send them all home but they were having trouble believing it but it was all they had. Thankfully at least they weren't going to die of thirst as the houses were equipped with water synthesisers so they had managed to refill their water canteens. One top of that they had discovered a month's worth of preserved foods. While they were sleeping or trying to sleeping the Doctor was trying to reach someone on the planet's public communications system.

Claire looked around the room trying to stay warm with her ruined trousers and t-shirt by wrapping a blanket around herself as there was no central heating in the building. Apparently it was designed that way by the owner. The crew of _Destiny_ plus Clara were muttering curses under their breath as the cold night air chilled them especially those that weren't fully clothed or who had had to replace their own damaged clothing.

TJ was sitting silent under her and Everett's blanket. She was just staring into space as she saw in her mind's eye the faces of her two children. She had promised to be back in a few days now it looked like she might not get back at all. She had a horrible dream when she had drifted off to sleep of her children going through life without her there. She saw them going to school for the first time without her taking them, she saw them in pain or scared by bad dreams and her not there to comfort them, she saw them at Christmas opening presents without her to share the joy, she saw them turning from small children into teenagers without her there to experience any of the highs and lows and she saw them getting married and having children of their own without her there to see them. It had woken her with a cold sweat and her heart racing. She had looked around for a moment hoping for all of it to have been a bad dream and that she was back on Earth only to realise that she was indeed trapped millions possibly billions of light years away from her children and unlikely with _Destiny_ gone to ever see them again if the 'Timelords' would not or could not send them home. Everett who had yet to sleep as he worried for the group's continued survival noticed she was awake and pulled her close as he saw the tears in her eyes.

"I'm scared we're never going to see them again." TJ told him as he massaged her shoulder and gently kissed her head. He had the same worries as she. He trusted their family to watch over them, his three older sisters would make sure to shower Carmen and Steven in love since he and TJ were not there to do it themselves but it was not the same as doing it yourself.

"I know. But we will get back to them. That is a promise." He said to her with a firm voice. He would do whatever he had too so he could get them back to Earth and more importantly to those that they loved. TJ just wrapped her arms around her husband and took strength from the security he radiated for her.

Clara was sharing a blanket with Doctor Molly O'Sullivan who apparently was the great granddaughter of one of the Doctor's old companions. She had heard some of the stories that the Doctor had shared about his time with Molly when they had been in the mess hall of _Destiny_ before and realised how hard her loss must have hit the Doctor. It made her wonder about the intense protectiveness the Doctor had shown towards her whenever she was in danger. He would focus on saving her whatever the cost and she knew that it wasn't just her, the way his previous self-had thrown himself into saving Vastra, Jenny and Strax after the Victorian trio had been taken to the Doctor's future tomb by the Great Intelligence regardless of how dangerous it was for him. She wondered how many of his close friends had he lost like he had lost Molly or this Lucie Miller that she had heard mentioned. Her sympathy for him grew even more, she had known he was old and lonely but it had never occurred to her how many of his friends he might have had to bury or just mourn. She hoped that when she and the Doctor did eventually part company as she knew they would one day that it would not cause him any more pain, he didn't deserve it.

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When morning came the humans and two Ancients in the group had experienced such a bad night that all had bags under their eyes and were full of aching muscles that they all had to stretch and move about in the morning light which mesmerised them all as they saw the suns rise and their light caught the forests and the silver leaves shone like a fire in the cold wind.

"Incredible isn't it?" The Doctor asked from behind them causing a few of them who hadn't heard him to jump.

"Amazing." Ginn said still focused but Young while still having been impressed by the sight in front got back to business.

"So" He asked the Timelord. "Did you manage to reach this 'Capital'? They can send us home right?" The Doctor's face fell briefly as he told them.

"Well they certainly could return all of you to Earth in less time than it takes to boil an egg but there is a problem. It seems the Daleks have destroyed the public communications network. So the only option we've got is to travel to the nearest town and hope we can get some help there. But unfortunately when the people who lived here left they took all their vehicles so we would have to go on foot." The Doctor said knowing what their next question was going to be and dreading the answer he was going to have to give already.

"Well where is it?" Kathy Scott asked and the Doctor turned around and pointed towards the vast intimidating mountain range behind them and said.

"On the other side of them."

No one spoke for a moment as they all looked at the huge mountains in front of them. Even at this distance they could see the snow that capped them and the clouds that hid the highest point. Before any of the _Destiny_ crew could say a word Clara spoke first in annoyed despair.

"You have got to be kidding me."

"I' am afraid not." The Doctor said while Vanessa said with concern.

"Most of us have never climbed a mountain before and if you haven't noticed we have no mountaineering equipment." She said but the Doctor told her.

"There are passage ways through the mountains it should only take us a few days."

"A few days!" Eli exclaimed really wishing he had tried harder in the workout sessions that been held on _Destiny_ by Matt and Greer. The mention of _Destiny_ even if it was only in his mind left a mournful pang that went to the core of his being. He really wished he had more time on the remarkable ship that the Ancients had built to cross the vast distance of the universe.

"Most of us aren't dressed for mountaineering." Claire said drawing attention to her burn and torn trousers and t-shirt. She was close to shivering this cold morning air in what she could only guess must be the planet's autumn-like period and saw several other members of the crew including TJ, Chloe, Val and Peter who were close to shivering as well. The Doctor however had an answer to that as well.

"There are some clothes in the manor houses. Enough to clothe everyone so they are warm enough to get through the mountains. I even found some more water holders and bags for carrying food and equipment. Some of the families around here used to go hiking in those mountains so I'm sure there must be some equipment around here somewhere." He paused for a moment putting an encouraging smile on his face and said.

"So, who is up for an adventure?"

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They had said yes, what else could they have said? Soon they started pouring through the contents of the manor houses and their outbuildings hoping that they might find something that might help in their quest. They found some warmer clothes in the closets of the buildings around them. But more pressingly they had discovered some mountaineering gear with hiking boots and portable lamps and heaters. The Doctor had said there were caves along the way and they would need these heaters to stay warm while they rested. The Doctor had also found a number of extraordinary 3-D maps of Gallifrey that he could use to make sure they were heading the right way and bags to carry their supplies and equipment. Cloaks for everyone on top of the warmer clothes and goggles to protect their eyes if the wind and snow got to bad up there.

Claire was checking herself out in her new Timelord outfit. Some of the clothes had been totally unsuitable for going into the mountains like the headpiece complete with skull cap but others had proven more useful. She had felt warm in the dark red tunic and undershirt with matching trousers both with golden embroidery and lining teamed with strong but comfortable hiking boots.

Clara came into the room wearing the same kind of outfit as she was and said.

"Nice, think they might let us keep them?" She asked liking how comfortable these clothes were and how warm.

"Maybe." Claire said as she put a red cloak over it and handing an orange to Clara who slipped it on and buttoned up. After taking stock of how they both looked they walked down the stairs of the manor where they had spent the night and joined the crowd of people at the manor's door waiting for the Doctor to be ready so they could start this great trek. The group around them was looking very unsure of this decision but there was nowhere else and given the incredible length that the mountain range spread to it would take almost five months to get around it on foot. But according to the maps that the Doctor had shown them the mountain range was nowhere as wide as they were long so it would only take roughly seven days if they made good time to get through to the other side. The crew had no real choice if they wanted to get home. One thing for certain was they couldn't stay here. No edible plants grew around here apparently and they only had rations for a month after raiding the food stores of the manor houses held in special preserving bags that the Doctor had found. Eventually they were going to have to move on from here so sooner while they had a reasonable level of supplies rather than when they had next to nothing.

Claire and Vanessa could feel the anxiety of the task they were going to tackle coming from the rest of the crew. Most of the military had some basic training in mountaineering. But most of the civilians had never been on a mountain unless it was in a vehicle. But even then not one of them had ever tried to get through mountains like these. The Doctor had shown them that although the terrain was going to be very difficult but not high enough on his paths to worry about the altitude. Which was a true blessing as they had no oxygen tanks to help cope with the reduced amount of oxygen at higher altitudes. The Doctor dressed in a big coat of dark red with gold designs emblazed around the lapels and collar was standing on a slightly raised fountain that no longer worked. He looked rather happy as the group's only guide. Only he knew how the maps worked and he knew the planet which none of them did.

"Right then. Have we got everything?" He asked with a smile turning to General Young who stood there with TJ looking unsettled but he nodded. He had doubled checked that they had all of their supplies and equipment ready before coming out here. Volunteers carried the large but strangely light bags. He was one of them with Matt, Greer and Varro amongst others.

"Good then let's go." The Doctor said looking forward to this, a way to see a part of his past again, a place that he had been dreaming about for so many centuries now since the Time War. He remembered the hermit that would later become K'anpo Rimpoche, the time leaping monk that had helped him in regenerating from his third self to his fourth. K'anpo was one of the wisest people he had ever met and the Doctor could only dare dream to have the honour of meeting him again. He had heard no mention of him in the time war so the Doctor could only guess he had either died before it had started or he had avoided it and by extension the Doctor for his role in it. Shaking himself from his thoughts he again smiled at the group as he gently leapt off the fountain and started the walk up the mountain. The group all took a collective steadying breath before following the Doctor. Clara easily kept pace with her friend as did the more physically fit of the other humans.

As they got closer to the base of the mountain that the Doctor had described as Mount Perdition the red grass covered slopes started to get steeper as they got closer to the mountain that marked the start of the mountain range they would have to pass. The terrain started to get slightly tougher as it got steeper but nothing the group couldn't handle. As they climbed however they started to feel the bitingly cold wind more as they gained height. The terrain also began to get rockier as they climbed. The tougher boots they had acquired certainly proved useful, Volker was especially glad as his own shoes would never have managed this terrain. But they all struggled to stay warm as they started getting into the snow covered areas. The snow was still falling gently around them as they moved on and the air became noticeably colder as they moved. At first the ground was still visible in patches that the snow had yet to cover, but soon the snow was covering the entire area around them. It became thicker on the ground so their feet began sinking in to the thick white snow around them.

At first they managed okay but after an hour or so it started becoming harder to move through the thick snow. People began getting stuck as they moved across the ridge the Doctor was leading them along. A fact Eli became painfully aware of as they neared a narrow part of the path.

"Help." Eli said looking to his friends and girlfriend who was trying to pull him free of the snow and unseen rocks that had trapped his foot only to become stuck herself. The wind was howling around them making all of them move slower and they were trying to anchor themselves as much as possible as the snow made the path treacherous and the wind blowing both snow and cold air into their eyes making it harder to see the danger and bleak landscape around them. The Doctor had found a cave that they could use for shelter. Already they could see the orange sky through the dark clouds growing dimmer above their heads. They really didn't want to have to try and keep climbing in the dark with only a handful of torches which had no spare batteries. But back to their present problem, Matt gave Eli and Ginn and rope and started to pull as carefully as he could mindful not to jerk them to fast or they would go down the two thousand feet drop only a couple of metres behind them. Both clung on tight to the rope as Matt and Greer pulled carefully so that the two computer geeks could get free of the snow they had become stuck in. Now free the four of them proceeded to the cave where the rest of the group had huddled in clusters around the portable heaters they had found trying to keep warm by sharing heat. The heaters also provided some light which with the lamps allowed them to see more clearly. It was only a short cave but it was just long enough to accommodate the group for a short while. Seeing the last four people arriving Young got to his feet from where he had been holding TJ who was having a harder time dealing with the separation from their son and daughter Kate fortunately took over while he went to take care of business. He himself was feeling torn up inside almost ready to give up despite whatever the Doctor said but the chance that he might again get to hold his daughter and son, to read them stories as TJ tucked them in at night was probably the only thing keeping him going.

"So no problems I trust?" He asked Matt who nodded grateful that the General was there. Back on _Destiny_ at the other end of the universe he had been the leader that had gotten them through whatever struggle they were facing. Camille had proven to be a great leader since she officially took command of the ship but he had learned much from the General and naturally looked to him for leadership.

"None sir, but I hope it isn't going to get any worse out there." Matt told him with Greer adding an agreeing nod. The snow was coming down even faster now and the wind was blowing harder, it left an almost deafening howl that many struggled to try and block out. Young grimaced at the sight, very grateful that they had found this cave and was dearly hoping that the storm would have died down by the following morning or they weren't going anywhere. Step one foot outside the cave entrance and the wind would blow you clear off the mountain.

"Right I'll take first watch. You take over in five hours." Young told him so that Matt could get some sleep. The near exhausted Captain nodded before going to join Chloe, Kathy and Lisa with Greer, Eli and Ginn. Seeing the people around him struggle to adapt to the cold the Doctor was grateful that his Timelord physiology gave him some more protection from extreme temperature, not much but enough to mean that he could deal with the weather up here a little better than the humans he was leading. Right now however he was huddled next to one of the heaters with Clara shivering next to him. He put his arm around the young woman and she relaxed slightly feeling better at her best friend's closeness. Claire was sat nearby, she had found herself joining the Doctor and Clara but did not want to disturb their tender moment. But the Doctor extended his arm and Claire relaxed herself feeling their combined warmth however small ease the biting cold around them.

"You know, when I was growing up around here there was a hermit that lived in one of the caves around here. Some might call him a monk." The Doctor began telling the two women huddled together with him. Both turned their heads slightly to give him their full attention seeing that he had it the Doctor continued. "Some said that he had lived on the mountain sitting under the same tree for more than half his life. Even back then made me look like a school boy which given that I' am two thousand years old now is something to say the least and he would still be older than me." He said with a slight chuckle before continuing the tale to the young women sitting at his side. "The tree was ancient and twisted but he had learned the secret of life under it and on the blackest day of my life at that point, I went to see him."

"Did he tell you the secret?" Clara asked in a voice filled with wonder as she pictured the scene. On the other side Claire was giving the Doctor her full attention.

"In a way." The Doctor said. "Around him that was just a bleak and cold landscape with small weeds growing around dull rocks and small piles of snow that were almost black with dirt. I hoped that he might offer some advice but although he listened to me as I poured out my problems he didn't say a word he just pointed to what I thought was a weed. I laughed at first but then I saw the weed through his eyes." He said remembering the event one of the many small steps that had brought him to the point in later life were he would begin his travels through time and space.

"But what I thought was a weed was in fact the only flower that were growing on the whole mountain and it was beautiful with the more vibrant colours than I ever could have imagined like a polished jewel and it was just glowing with life. As I descended down the mountain I saw for the first time the incredible colours that before I had missed. The rocks that I had thought so depressingly grey were in fact the most brilliant shades of red, brown, purple and gold and the black snow was glistening white in the sun." He said lost in the memory that he had once recounted like this to Jo Grant during his third life in a dudgeon in city of Atlantis, not the Ancient City ship but a crude imitation made by humans based on the legends passed down to them. Both young women looked amazed at the story and the Doctor smiled before adding.

"From that moment on I would visit him often. He would tell me stories of ghosts and of the great vampires." The Doctor said but both women looked shocked at the last word.

"Vampires!" Claire exclaimed while Clara stayed silent for a moment. "They're real?"

"Another story for another time." The Doctor said with a tired smile. "Now we all need to get some sleep. We have a difficult day ahead of us tomorrow."

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The next day was even harder than the first. Although the wind let up enough for them not to be immediately blown straight down a great canyon that was below them they were still being frozen by the freezing cold and nearly blinded by the wind which was still blowing fiercely around them. Also the snow was just as difficult to overcome as they moved forward.

Morrison, one of the civilian scientists was struggling worse than most. He was not a terribly fit man and the harsh terrain was starting to get to him. His mood was becoming darker and darker as they kept moving.

"We should have stayed at the house." He shouted over the howling wind to Airman Chu and Boone, another two original members of the crew. He was about to shout another complain their way when he slipped on a patch of ice that he had not noticed and slipped falling hard onto a rock that was just peeking out of the snow. Although he didn't slip towards the edge which at this point of the path they were moving along was three metres away. But a sickening crunch was heard by those that were close enough over the wind that was rushing around them. Morrison screamed out in pain as he felt his leg break and Chu and Boone quickly grabbed him to prevent him doing any more damage. Crying in pain Morrison was helped carefully to his feet by the two men and they helped him move forward seeing Chloe just ahead of them and hoped she might be able help.

Further ahead where the path had become much narrower the group was having a much harder time moving onward. Claire was walking just ahead of TJ when she felt the ground under her feet give way and time seemed to slow down as her body started to quickly slide down the slope to her death below. Out of the corner of her eyes Claire could see the vast chasm that must have gone down at least two thousand metres and for a split second Claire could only summon one thought.

'I'm sorry that I won't be there to see you grow up my girls.'

But at the moment her hand went just below the part of the path that had broken she felt a hand close firmly around hers and stop her falling. Now her sense of shock was overwhelmed by adrenaline as Claire grasped at the ledge while looking up to see that TJ anchoring herself as best as she could while struggling to stop Claire falling. Everett Young was helping Tamara hold on but Claire was struggling to get her grip on the edge and pulled up hard once she had managed it allowing her with TJ and Young's help to get back on the ledge.

"Next time watch your step." TJ said shouting to be heard over the edge looking scared at how close one of her friend's had come to death but Claire didn't hesitate to grab TJ into a hug and say loudly enough for both TJ and Young to hear.

"Thank you." Claire felt a tear coming down her face at how close her daughters had come to becoming orphans.

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For two more days after that they kept moving. The conditions thankfully could not get any worse or at least they hoped they would not according to the Doctor who was familiar with the weather patterns of the mountains. The Doctor kept up a blistering pace despite the conditions causing many of the crew to swear under their breath which was very visible in the biting cold. The paths were sometimes only a metre wide if that and the only way they could make it past those points was to go agonisingly slow and pray that the ground underneath you did not give away. The icy wind threatened to blow them off the mountain if the cold did not make their hands so numb that they lost their grip and the slippery snow did not send them into the deep gorges that were beneath them. Ginn was in a terrible state, her fear of heights was becoming almost paralysing. Other members of the group were having to gently move her along the terrifying paths that they were using. Eli was having to comfort her almost every moment. However when the evening began to dawn on their fourth day crossing the mountains their luck finally ran out.

Two men were moving along the path that was two metres wide when suddenly they heard a rumbling above them. Everyone that could hear the noise looked up to see the source of the noise and saw to their horror that some of the snow above them had come loose from the cliff above them and before they could even call out a warning it hit the two men that were crossing that particular path hard and knocked them clear off the path. Those that were close enough could only watch in horror as they saw the two men plummet down into the inky black darkness below screaming.

It was a solemn moment, those two men had come through the destruction of _Destiny_ only to lose their lives here on the mountain. They might not have been here as long as some of the others but they were all in this insane situation together. Young took less time to mourn, again the loss of those men that had been his responsibility cut deeply into his heart but he was the leader and did not have the luxury of being emotional right now.

"Let's go." Young shouted over the wind and pulling TJ with him who was still staring down the gorge where the two men had fallen. The group said nothing more till they got to the cave where they would take shelter for the night. As the portable heaters were set up in what was becoming familiar ritual the crew was despondent. The weight of the loss of _Destiny_ and those that had gone down with the ship had been preying on them for five days already but the downcast looks had grown harder in intensity after the death of those two men and the general hardship that their day to day lives had seemingly become made it even greater. The people that were left were all original _Destiny_ crewmembers and many of them were feeling worse than ever. Only those early days on the ship that was now lost to them could ever compare with this. The day they had nearly suffocated, the day the power had run out and they all thought they were going to die as the ship flew into the star. But even then there had been brief moments of respite. But here even with the heaters on full blast they were not spared for a moment from the biting cold, the terrible winds that always seemed ready to blow them over the edge and to their deaths at a moment's notice and the terrifying drops that were never far away from their minds. The crew was genuinely close to losing whatever hope that they had left.

When they arrived in the cave that night the crew was silent not speaking at all. Selene Howard was being comforted by Varro with Tasia and Calvos. Selene had been dating one of the men killed earlier today and the loss was drowning her in grief. Around her many others were mourning their lost brothers in arms.

As Claire and Clara sat down next to the Doctor while Eli gently rubbed Ginn's back with Chloe giving the shaking girl all the support she could the Doctor made an offhand comment to try and break the ice so to speak as he picked up on the depressed mood in the cave.

"Well, it's a shame that they moved the academy away from here before the war." Clara and Claire looked up in surprise and Clara quickly demanded.

"Well why don't we go there then? There should be some shelter there and maybe transport." She asked thinking that the old buildings might be useful to them but the Doctor shook his head as neither woman understood what he was saying.

"No I mean they literally moved the campus itself one day." Hearing his words Claire suddenly felt very small and she could no longer hold his gaze as yet another Timelord achievement was revealed that meant they had moved a whole campus of buildings with so little apparent effort. The Doctor noticed this and asked. "What is it?"

"We must be like insects to you. Born then we're gone and by comparison still in the mud banging stones together." She said in a sad voice. It was very humbling to find out just how far ahead other races were and how low on the food chain humanity actually was. The Doctor however took hold of her chin and pulled it up so her gaze met his.

"That." He told her. "Is nonsense. You humans have never failed to impress me for either the right or wrong reasons. There is a spirit about you, a gift that is unique amongst all the different races that I have met in my travels. No matter how hard you get knocked down, you dust yourself off and get right back up again. If you make mistakes then you learn from them. If you stumble you get back on your feet and keep on moving. Indomitable I once called the human race. Indomitable." He said with a small twinkle in his eyes that made both women feel better and smile again. He then told them something else. "It is something that my own people have forgotten, to learn from our mistakes and move forward. To try and better ourselves. Something that will need to be remedied." He said in a deadly quiet whisper that would have scared some people with the intensity of his eyes and his voice. He was thinking about what he was going to do about the High Council and Rassilon when they reached the Capital. For Gallifrey and indeed the universe to have any chance of a decent future they needed to be dealt with. He had a plan in work but he would need a few things from the Capital to give it any real chance of success. The old order that those men and women represented were a threat to all of creation and their arrogance needed to be stopped at all costs.

"Doctor." Claire asked feeling the intensity of his feelings with both the Doctor's expression and the strong will radiating off him. "Are we close to the end? Some of the crew I don't think can go on much longer." She said taking a quick look around her. The sight of the people was a definite cause for concern, their heads were hanging low with depression and near total exhaustion. The mood had been steadily declining over the last couple of days as the conditions they were battling through got worse and worse. However the death of those two men had seen a dramatic sucker punch delivered to all of them. The strain was starting to tell and Claire did not dare use her telepathy actively, even passively the feelings of the group were almost overwhelming her in their negativity and it took a lot of effort on her and Vanessa's part to shut them out.

"Not long now, one more day and we should be able to get out the other side." The Doctor reassured her, he took out the map and showed her on the amazing 3-D map that somehow always adjusted itself to match the weather conditions that were currently going on in the local area. Seeing where the group was in relation to the mountain range and where they had started Claire was amazed at how much progress they had actually made. The paths the Doctor had guided them down had seemed harder than others but they had indeed been very effective shortcuts and gotten them through much quicker than they would have expected. "We have made better time than I thought."

"Great." Clara said she herself was picking up on the negative cloud that seemed to be hanging over the group she and the Doctor had fallen in with. She regarded them with suspicion, she had to admit she was carrying a grudge over the way they had beat the Doctor up earlier and although she understood why they had done it, she had felt the same after that thing with Missy and her alliance with the Cybermen even to the extent that she would have murdered Missy if given the chance at that moment if the Doctor had not taken the weapon off her. She was still angry enough at them for attacking her best friend.

Still Clara thought to herself she would be grateful to get out of this winter nightmare. The people were exhausted, struggling to stay warm with the freezing temperatures in small cramped caves with the howling wind that prevented them whenever they dared to try and get some sleep. She was getting very tired herself and as the group got more tired they were bound to make more mistakes.

She could only hope that they were not fatal ones.

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The next day the group set out again at first light, the wind had died down somewhat and although still strong it was not as powerful as it had been on previous days giving them some small respite. The team moved along the paths the Doctor had chosen but the group kept their guard up in case of a repeat of yesterday. The Doctor at the front of the group had removed his goggles so he could see the map and area more easily. The rest of the group copied his actions now that the wind was not constantly filling their eyes with snowflakes or the freezing cold gusts of air all the time and were quite frankly sick of having the tight and uncomfortable goggles stuck to their faces. The air was still freezing cold but without the wind the group was finding it easier to handle.

TJ was hanging back with Ginn to try and help the girl through a particularly difficult part of the path with Eli while Matt and Chloe were with Greer at the rear of the group making sure things were alright back there. Camille was with Kate helping Morrison who although Claire and Vanessa had healed his leg would not trust it fully with his weight. Rush and Young were right behind the Doctor, both men determined to keep up with the Timelord.

They were coming to a nasty bend in the path when it happened. The wind suddenly from nowhere began to pick up and howled around them far strong than it had the last few days when they had been out on the mountain. Everyone even the Doctor hunkered down to try and not get blown right off the mountain. The Doctor held Clara firmly in her grasp while everyone else grabbed onto whatever they could to try and wait for the sudden blast of wind to ease before they tried to get to safer ground. Rush and Young however where struggling to stay still as they had nothing to grab onto too. Then both men tried to secure more stable footing when the wind changed direction and they felt ice beneath their feet when they tried to anchor themselves. With slippery ice beneath their feet and the gale force wind pushing against them they had little warning as they slid over the small path they were moving along and off the edge into the abyss below.

"EVERETT." TJ screamed as she saw her husband of less than half a year about to fall to his death. The crewmembers that could see watched their leader and the gruff scientist that they had all learned to tolerate or even worship in Brody's case go over the edge. For the two men that were falling it was down backwards so they were facing the mountain rather than the sheer down beneath them. Everett could see TJ's horror stricken face clearly amongst the others. Her beautiful blue eyes full of terror at his apparent fate of falling to his death in front of her and he was filled with not anger but sadness over not being there to be with her and watching their son and daughter grow up. Not growing old with her and hopefully one day having grandchildren they could spoil. This was all happening in the blink of an eye for him but he only wished that he had not wasted so much time.

Rush was in a similar position except the love of his life was not here. Gloria might be long gone and if he believed in such a thing he might believe they were about to be reunited although he really didn't. Instead he was thinking of Amanda Perry, the propulsion expert that he had nicknamed little miss brilliant. His main regret was not keeping his promise to see her again, she had made him feel if not happy but hopeful for the first time in such a long time of just going through the motions of living. But she actually made him feel alive and want to dream for the future again after being hollow since Gloria's death.

Both men could only think about the women they loved as they closed their eyes preparing for whatever came after they left this world when suddenly the sensation of falling was replaced by a slight pressure all over their bodies. They dared open their eyes and saw that Claire and Vanessa with their hands outstretched and trembling slightly with their faces screwed up in concentration as they held the two men in their telekinetic grip. The other members of the group watched as the two men that were the most experienced of nearly all of them stopped falling and hovered in mid-air for a moment before floating back over onto a wider part of the path and coming back down to the ground landing on their own two feet respectively. Looking over to their saviours the two men could only nod in appreciation as their breathing slowed down. TJ came running into Everett where her arms wrapped around him like a vice, surprising him with her strength. He wrapped his own arms around her and held his wife as she dealt with nearly losing him. Rush meanwhile found his hand being taken by Kathy Scott who smiled while giving it a squeeze. He found himself smiling back as the adrenaline from his near death experience left him.

Claire and Vanessa now with a slight headache from using their telekinesis pressed on with the Doctor as thankfully the wind started dying down enough for them to keep moving. The panic over the group continued on towards the other side of the mountain range. The path they were following thankfully started widening as they reached a point where it went through the peaks of two smaller mountains. As they moved through the towering cliffs above them they were greeted by a giant plain which was covered over in snow. It must have been the size of twenty football pitches. The snow was now falling harder again and the Doctor turned to face the group.

"On the other side of this field." The Doctor shouted over the noise of the wind which was starting to pick up again. "There is a cave system. If we can get there then it gives us a shortcut down the mountain to the other side. It will save us another three days trip and we will finally be out of this snow." The crew picked up at that loving the idea of being out of this frozen hellhole cheered causing the Doctor to smile at their enthusiasm and better mood after days of misery and depression. So he turned and said with pride. "Onward."

The crew feeling more hopeful for the first time since they had arrived on this planet. The field however unlike the mountains they had previously been navigating provided no protection from the wind which was now able to hit them from all of the three hundred and sixty degrees around them. This combined with the heavy snow meant they quickly put their uncomfortable goggles back on before tugging their heavy coats and cloaks tighter around them as they moved in a column forward across the deep field. People found it hard to move as their feet got stuck in the snow sometimes going up to their hips in the stuff. The upbeat attitude that had marked them briefly as they started across the field quickly faded as they struggled to get through the thick drifts of snow to try and find a cave entrance that would save them another three or so days of hiking through the mountains. The Doctor was thankful that this regeneration had given him a good height physically leaving him with little issue in crossing the snow field. But his companion Clara being only just above five foot tall was finding it nearly impossible to move in the thick snow and the Doctor was having to stop and help her out. One time Clara who had never considered her height a major issue before had found herself up to her neck in snow as they fought through a surprisingly deep drift. Other members of the former crew of _Destiny_ who were on the short side or even medium sized in terms of height were having problems as well crossing the deep snow. Now on top of the wind and the snow their clothes were getting wet from the snow melting on contact with their warmer bodies. TJ, Molly and Chloe were all starting to get worried about the crew getting hypothermia or frost bite. But then as they reached the other end of the large, open but snow covered plateau the Doctor found the small cave entrance maybe two feet across that he had been looking for. Turning to see his soaked assistant who was shivering badly he pulled her into the cave while shouting to the people behind.

"In here." Following him into the cave they discovered it was actually warmer inside and the Doctor using his sonic screwdriver as a torch turned to face the people who were trying to keep warm. "Follow me."

The crew that had torches and some of the portable lamps they had found in the Timelord mansions turned them on despite the worries about the batteries running out. The cave was surprisingly large inside considering how small the entrance had been allowing them to move more closely as a group.

"This is spooky." Selene Howard said as she saw the shadows being cast by the stalagmites which looked like monsters in a horror film. Eli nodded as he saw one that looked slightly like the alien in the film of the same name.

"How long will it take to get out of here?" Kathy Scott asked as she held her torch at the front of the group. The Doctor didn't bother turning around to answer her and kept moving forward while saying off hand.

"Two or three hours. Why is there somewhere you need to be?" He asked sarcastically. He knew these tunnels like the back of his hand and more precisely where they would come out. The crew all stayed quiet as they moved through the dark cave trying not to look around them as the shadows and darkness started to play tricks on their sleep deprived and numb from cold minds. Claire and Vanessa who had two of the torches walked upfront with the Doctor shining their light on the path ahead.

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For two hours the group made good time, they had even started to warm up now that they were no longer in the cold winds or being nearly buried by freezing snow. The crew was on edge from the silence of the cave and the darkness that seemed to be closing in around them held back only by the small lamps and torches that the crew were carrying. Now instead of worrying about getting blown off a mountain or freezing to death some members of the crew began to worry that they could be wandering around this cave till they ran out of supplies. It was only the result of their exhaustion but the crew needed to get a break soon or people were going to start collapsing from physical exhaustion.

Then in the distance they saw a small speck of light. It was barely the size of a pin but as they moved closer it got larger and larger. The light drew people like a flame causing them to draw on their last reserves of strength to get closer to it. Some it became the exit to the tunnel larger than the entrance by five feet. Emerging into the dimmer light of the evening easing the transition from darkness into light on the slope down from the mountains. The crew looked around to see a forest around them full of silver leaves and fruit hanging from their branches. But what really caught their attention was the vast lake only a short walk away and they all marvelled at the beauty it seemed to have in the gentle light of evening with a strange sound drifting up towards them.

"May I present Lake Abydos" The Doctor said proudly as they saw the immense lake that went on that stretched out beyond the horizon. The crew felt like they had fallen in love with the lake in front of them. They started to make their way towards in and finally put their feet on the red grass again. It was warmer here not hot but warmer allowing them to take off their soaked coats and cloaks so they could warm up a bit. Then as they arrived in a field next to the lake by which time it was now well into night, Val called out in amazed wonder.

"Look at the sky." Everyone looked up at the night's sky only to have their breath taken away by one of the most incredible sights they had seen. The sky above them was dancing with light as hundreds of meteors moved across the night's sky which was a dazzling mix of greens mixing with brilliant yellows and purples in an explosion of colour that had the humans had never seen before. It blew the mind to see it and the Doctor sat back on the ground looking straight up, still smiling in wonder at the incredible sight above them Clara got down next to him folding her cloak to use as a pillow. In awe the rest of the group copied her actions staring in wonder the once in a lifetime show above them.

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 _Thank you to everyone who reviewed it has been good to hear your comments!_


	4. Chapter 4

_I do not own Doctor Who or Stargate Universe_

" __ ."_ _Speaking in another Language_

 **Chapter 4 – The Death Zone**

Two days had passed since the crew had arrived at Lake Abydos and its strangely warm climate, when they had asked the Doctor why it was so warm here he had just waved them off with a mumbled excuse. After spending nearly a week in the freezing cold of the mountains in Southern Gallifrey the better temperature acted like a tonic to the exhausted crew of the now destroyed _Destiny_ , letting them regain their strength. They let themselves sleep while restocking their supplies with the local fruit that grew in the forest that surrounded the lake on this side. People after it had been confirmed safe took a small swim in the lake while those on land watched the singing fish as the Doctor had called them whose melodies often helped them get to sleep allowing them to take the time now that they weren't fighting for their lives or working their way through deadly mountains to come to terms with losing _Destiny_. The ship had meant a lot to all of them. It had been their home, carrying them through their journey and been a rock to cling to when the outside universe had seemed so unfriendly and they had been so far from Earth and those they cared about. They had come together as a crew and learned to work together on that ship, discovered how much they could achieve as individuals and more importantly as a team, so much so that when the ship had been sent to explore the outer edges of the galaxy by the SGC they had nearly all stayed on even after over a year of worrying that they might never see Earth again. The Doctor had assured them that the Timelords could send them all home but some of them doubted it. It was a hope but one they were privately thinking was going to be dashed.

And they also knew they would have to move on from this place soon as they made their way towards civilisation. No buildings could be found in this area so they had no choice if they wanted to have a chance of going home than to move on. But for now the crew was taking the chance to enjoy themselves and recharge their batteries not knowing if they would have the chance to do so again. Clara was swimming with Chloe Armstrong in a small race while the rest of their friends sat on the bank and cheered.

"Go on Chloe." Matt called out to his girlfriend with Eli and Ginn while the Doctor shouted.

"Clara you can win this." The encouragement pushed both young women on as they neared the makeshift finishing line between Claire and TJ. It was a friendly contest so no-one particularly bothered who won but they cheered regardless. Chloe looked like she was going to pull ahead but in a last burst of speed Clara managed to pass Chloe and swim between the two other women ending the race with her as the winner. The Doctor cheered at her victory while Clara slowed down to a standstill and waited while catching her breath for Chloe to catch up. The other woman soon past the finishing line as well and Clara gave her a big smile and told her.

"You were great." She said but Chloe's smile was smaller feeling a little let down that she hadn't won but it was only a friendly race and both young women swam to the shore and pulled themselves up onto the land. They were both clad only in their wet underwear so they got a lot of male attention but paid them no mind as they lay down on the red grass to let the warm breeze dry them.

The Doctor smiled seeing his friend being humble in victory and was only disturbed from his enjoyment of the day around him when a voice to his left interrupted him.

"Doctor." He turned to see Camille standing there with General Young and Doctor Rush. He also saw Claire Williams with a cloak wrapped around her body which was still wet from being in the lake. Sighing as he saw the meeting with the leaders of the group he resigned himself to telling them something that he had remembered upon arriving here.

"We need to decide our next move." General Young said as much as he himself was enjoying the rest he wanted to get the group moving again.

"Well where's this town you told us about?" Rush asked not liking how much they were having to rely on this Doctor that they knew next to nothing about. The revelation of what the message really was had shaken him, but he had had worse disappointments in his life and he would recover from this one too.

"About a hundred fifty miles that way." The Doctor said pointing to the other side of the forest. The distance involved made all of the humans present nearly drop their jaws at the distance after having just climbed around mountains.

"A HUNDRED AND FIFTY!" Claire exclaimed. She was certain the crew could do it but it was going to take a really long time even if they made good progress. Not to mention what might be waiting between here and there.

"Well that's the easy way." The Doctor admitted looking sheepish. "The hard way is much shorter than that but we have to cross the Death Zone."

There was silence at the last two words, none of the humans or the Ancient present liked the sound of the 'Death Zone' so Young asked.

"And please tell us. What is the Death Zone?" The Doctor looked hesitant for a moment as he contemplated what he was about to tell them. It involved some of the darkest secrets of the Timelords but if they were going to cross it then they had to tell them what to expect.

"The Death Zone was set up in the Dark Times, a time earlier in the formation of this universe. Creatures of terrible and near limitless power roaming the much smaller universe causing utter chaos wherever they went flourishing at the expense of so many others." He himself had been born long after the Dark Times but he had seen some of it in his travels in time and space not to mention the creatures that were born in that era that had survived to the present day. "Well the early people of Gallifrey before we became the Timelords had powers strong enough to hold off the chaos out in the universe but they misused them disgracefully. They created a place on Gallifrey where they would bring creatures from all over time and space and force them to play a game of survival. Last one standing wins." The Doctor looking shamefaced at the admission. It had been a shame that all Timelords carried although some like the Master would later see it as a mark of pride that his ancestors were so powerful that other creatures had been but toys to them. The Doctor's audience looked on in horror at what he was saying. If Eli had been there he might have mentioned a film reference or two but that this had really happened was shocking to the humans present. The Doctor quickly however moved on.

"Later my ancestors started to realise what they were doing was wrong, just wrong." He said hoping they had not judged him by the actions of his people. "So they walled off the area with a force field and shut the game down where it has stayed shut down. Before the Time War it was nearly impossible to get into the Death Zone but as the Daleks attacked Gallifrey they accidentally created disruptions in the field allowing holes to develop. If we cross it then it would save a lot of time and get us to the town inside of a day maybe two." He told them. He saw the humans and the Ancient girl around him looked uncertain, they really did not like the sound of this but they still did not have any other choice. They needed to get help if they were ever going to get off this planet and there was no sign of any civilisation around here so they would have to try for this town.

"Okay." Young said with strong reservations. "We will pack up and head out tomorrow morning."

Camille and Rush looked ready to object but faced with the prospect of such a long journey the shorter but more dangerous path seemed like their only choice.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Everyone grumbled about leaving the pleasant environment around Lake Abydos but faced with the opportunity to get home the crew knew they had too. Spending the rest of the day refilling their water canteens and picking fruit from the trees to resupply their food stock they all camped out under the stars on the pleasant shores of Lake Abydos watching the night's sky. The incredible constellations they could see with nebula clouds visible was a majesty sight that took their breath away.

The following morning they got up and had a breakfast of fruit before turning to the Doctor who led them into the forest. Walking through the strange trees which twisted into all kinds of different shapes the crew wished they had cameras to document the sights they were seeing around them. Putting their cloaks and coats back on as they moved further and further away from the lake and the air cooled slightly around them. The sunlight came through the gaps in the dense forest allowing the nervous crew to see that nothing was going to jump out and attack them. The forest however seemed to keep on going, for over twelve hours they kept moving through the forest that seemed as big as the Amazon back on Earth.

Eventually they saw a break in the tree line and emerged into a clearing where they marvelled at the huge wall of swirling white energy that seemed to go on forever in every direction. However they saw a small gap that appeared in front of the Doctor. He walked forward till he was only inches from the gap and pulled out his sonic screwdriver and scanned it. He cleared his throat as he turned around to face his audience and told them all.

"This is one of the disruptions in the force field around the Death Zone. There are others on the opposite side that we can use to get out nearer to the town. We will have to go through single file and whatever you do don't touch the force field." He warned them with a serious expression. He decided not to enlighten them as to what would happen if they touched it. They were likely nervous enough at the Death Zone as it was. Without waiting he then turned on his heel and walked confidently through the small gap that he was only just able to fit through. Clara looked at the white barrier nervously before walking forward. The rest of the crowd looked on for a moment before one by one they followed the Doctor and the Impossible Girl through the gap into the Death Zone.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

When they emerged onto the other side they were surprised at what they saw. They were standing on a large hill looking out onto a desolate landscape. The land ahead of them was obscured by mist that made seeing anything in the distance difficult. The sky was an overcast grey but it did not seem to be raining over land that looked like wet moors and rocky wastelands. Something they immediately noticed however was that the grass here was green rather than red like the rest of Gallifrey that they had seen so far.

"Lovely." Matt said not liking the change of locations after a pleasant couple of days at the shore of Lake Abydos. This place was filled with a slightly cold and damp atmosphere and a completely depressing landscape. The rest of the crew looked ahead distinctly unimpressed, Claire meanwhile just shook her head. Some areas around where she had grown up in Wales looked a lot like this so it didn't put her off as much as the others.

"So there is nothing in the Death Zone right?" Clara asked the Doctor from the head of the group and he turned to her with a slight grin and told her with the utmost confidence remembering it had been such a long time that surely there would be nothing here now.

"Nothing at all."

Then a loud roar was heard that sounded like a cross between a bear and a lion shocking them all. They looked around nervously expecting some great beast to emerge from the mist and attack them. Clara just looked at the Doctor with slightly widened eyes who then amended his earlier statement in a voice nowhere near and confident and with no smile on his face.

"Almost nothing."

"Alright." Young told the group who all held themselves very tense. "Let's move out." So the group began walking into the strange and desolate land ahead. They looked out in every direction their eyes looking for any threat that might emerge.

At the head of the group the Doctor remembered the last time he had been here during the incarnation that he had privately christened the 'War Doctor' with Cinder to get help from his old teacher Borusa who Rassilon had changed into a probability generator. He had been in such a rush that he had no time to actually check on the status of the Death Zone and what might be here. He had been sure that none of the monsters that had been here during his earlier visit to the area when his first, second, third and fifth selves had met would have survived for this long but it was possible. With that his concern grew about what they might be facing in here.

As the group moved down a slight slope towards a very small wooded area ahead they stopped as a strange beeping sound appeared. Everyone looked around as they tried to find the source of the strange noise. The Doctor's brow screwed itself up as he concentrated, he knew that noise from somewhere. It must have been ages ago but he was sure that it was familiar to him. He looked around with his excellent hearing as did Clara who then spotted a dark shape coming over the hill behind them.

"Look there." She cried out pointing her finger at the edge of the hill. They all turned to look at the area she was pointing at and they all looked in time to see huge hulking beasts nearly seven feet tall covered head to foot in dark brown fur and standing on two legs move slowly into view. They had two hands like a humans except that they lacked a thumb and they were scaly like those of a reptile. Above the large mouth were two eyes that were more like two bright spots of white light on its face. As they approached the group the beeping noise that they had noticed earlier was getting louder. Everyone in the group's breath hitched and the Doctor exclaimed.

"Yeti." But that was a mistake as the creature took dead aim at the group and with considerable speed for creatures of their bulk the Yeti standing rushing towards them. No-one hesitated at the next word that came a moment later out of the Doctor's mouth. "Run."

Everyone turned away from the approaching Yeti and started moving as fast as they were able to put some distance between themselves and the monsters that were in hot pursuit. The humanoids struggled to stay on their feet as they ran down the hill into the valley that they had been moving into. The roars of the Yeti behind them were all the encouragement that they needed to move on forward as the ground thankfully became more level but still uneven with rocks jutting out of the ground and mounds of earth to fall over. The group became truly thankful for the rest that they had at Lake Abydos as if they had come straight here after crossing the mountains none of them would have had the strength to push their bodies forward in an attempt to outrun the creatures that were chasing them.

Eli looked over his shoulder and saw the creatures were gaining on them only for him to trip over on a rock that he had not seen coming. Ginn who was at his side stopped with Greer to help the younger man to his feet and saw the Yeti coming closer. Greer took his rifle and emptied an entire clip of desperately short ammunition into one of the creatures that were fast approaching them. The bullets seemed to bounce off the fur of the creature and it kept coming closer. While Eli and Ginn held each other sure that death was coming and the group stopped when they saw Eli, Ginn and Greer had fallen behind only to watch in horror as they thought they were about to see three of their number get torn to pieces by the Yeti, Greer drew his knife determined not to give these horrible creatures the satisfaction of killing him easily.

But just as he and his two young charges thought that it was their last moment in this universe the Yeti suddenly stopped charging at them and turned towards the opposite end of the small valley were the humans, timelord and two ancients saw several huge lumbering figures creeping towards them. As they got closer the visitors to the Death Zone mouth's almost dropped at what looked like huge hulking mummies like you saw in horror movies coming lumbering towards the Yeti who all began charging straight at the mummies that were easily as tall and broad as the Yeti and two groups of monsters clashed in a ferocious fight of savage violence. The group saw this primal fight begin and Young silently waved his hand over to the other side of the valley were the slope up was gentler. Taking his lead the crew all moved as quietly as they could away from the creatures that up until that moment the crew had thought were only myth. Once they were a good enough distance away from the warring creatures they all took a deep breath to recover from the sudden sprint to avoid being mauled. Eli of course exclaimed out loud in shocked exasperation.

"Mummies and Yeti are real? They weren't in any SGC introduction video I saw."

"Me neither." Chloe said as she sat down on the ground to get her breath back. Everyone looked over to the Doctor with accusation in their eyes, feeling that he had led them in here without warning them of what they might face. The man tensed before telling them.

"They are not real, just robots created by others like the Great Intelligence and the Osirans to do their bidding either based off the myth of such creatures or they would later become the inspiration for it." He said thinking of the last times he had encountered such creatures. Although he vaguely remembered having encountered a Yeti in the Death Zone during his second incarnation there had only been one living in a cave not a whole pack of them wandering about. And there certainly hadn't been any Osiran mummies or none that his four earlier incarnations had seen as they wandered across the Death Zone. How they were here now caused him great concern, had someone started the games again? Someone on the High Council or worse Rassilon himself? The kidnapping of other creatures to fight on the whims of a power mad timelord made him sick to his stomach and it also made the crossing of the Death Zone more perilous than he had imagined it could be.

"What else are we likely to encounter here?" Camille asked wondering if they should have taken the much longer route around the Death Zone rather than through it. The Doctor only shook his head before telling her.

"I don't know. These creatures being here was as much a surprise to me as to you." The Doctor said making them all frown in concern at what else might be waiting in here. Clara then told them all.

"Well until we meet it there is no sense in worrying. So let's get going."

The group grumbled but they wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible before anything else came looking for them.

Little did they know the number of surprises that waited here, both bad and more surprisingly…?

Good.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As the group carried on up out of the small valley they saw a vast moor ahead of them. The mist made seeing further than fifty feet a challenge and they all felt great anxiety at the thought of crossing into the mist filled area after their encounter with the Yeti and the Robot Mummies. Knowing that it was too dangerous to go back with those creatures behind them and the journey around the area would take too long they all took a fortifying breath and walked forward. The soldiers on the perimeter of the group looked intently around to see any potential trouble in time to deal with it. Claire was up front with the Doctor and Clara, her modified Ancient Particle Magnum in its holster at her side and her fingers ready to grasp it at a moment's notice. She wondered if she could use her telepathy to sense out threats before they reached them but the moment she tried she winced at the psychic noise around her. The anxiety of the group was so high and their thoughts so loud it was like listening to the most rough rock music imaginable at the highest possible volume. She immediately had a headache that made her abandon the attempt. She looked over to Vanessa as she massaged her temple and saw the female marine wincing the same as her as Varro tried to find out what was wrong having had the same idea she had and was suffering the same result.

"Are you alright?" Clara asked seeing the pain in Claire's expression who tried to suppress it and smile at the other woman which she managed although it did not reach her eyes.

"It is the psychic noise the group is making, I have to suppress my telepathy or I get it all at once and boy does it leave you with a headache." She told Clara, the Doctor ignored them as he focused on keeping the group moving forward on the right heading. "Vanessa is having the same problem."

"How did you become telepathic?" Clara asked curious at how an apparently normal human not unlike herself could gain the abilities that she had seen so far.

"I am a distant descendant of the Ancients, the same race that built _Destiny_. I was infected with a virus that rewrote my human DNA with the left over Ancient genetic material inside me. Later Vanessa was infected with the same virus and we both gained the powers that the Ancients had; telepathy, telekinesis and healing amongst other benefits." She said with a smile and Clara was intrigued but only academically. She had no desire to have those powers herself and was quite content to be a normal human being, those dreams that she sometimes had about her other selves that had been created when she had thrown herself into the Doctor's time stream namely the one of her being turned into a Dalek made her almost shiver in revulsion. Ever since the day she had made that sacrifice having not expected to be rescued by the Doctor she had been suffering dreams of those other Clara's. They only came occasionally but it was still a chilling experience to feel them like that especially when some of them died. She shook herself out of those dark thoughts and smiled although it was not as bright as before only to hit the Doctor's outstretched arms with Claire as he brought the group to a stop.

"Halt." The Doctor said and the group looked around for an obstacle or threat around them only to see nothing.

"What is it?" Lieutenant Kathy Scott asked as her fingers tensed around her pistol drawing it as a precaution as did the others who were carrying weapons in the group. The Doctor pointed into the shifting mists ahead of them and they could just see a few shapes looming out of it. The next thing they knew was screaming electronic sounds as green blasts of energy came out of the fog. The humans dived for cover managing to find a small slope that provided some protection only to look up again at the source of the attack and see five lumbering ape-like humanoids holding pistols emerge from the mist. Those who had a weapon pointed and fired at the strange creatures but bullets like with the Yeti seemed to bounce off the skin of the creatures. Then Claire and Vanessa who were carrying the modified Ancient Particle Magnums took aim and fired. The blue plasma hit the monsters dead centre causing them to be knocked back a step and with a fast second shot to the head fell down. Seeing the obvious tactic work the two women used their best shooting to quickly take down the strange creatures who did not seem to notice or care at the danger they found themselves in and kept coming at them even when only one member of their group left. Seeing the immediate danger pass the group carefully got out of their protective zone and move forward towards the downed aliens and Molly peered down over one of them looking for any signs of movement. Seeing none she moved away and nodded that it was safe. The Doctor took one look at the strange creatures and identified them from his vast experience of different life forms.

"Ogrons." He said with distain. "Simple brutes that are used as mercenaries by some criminals and other various nasty individuals including the Daleks. Stupid on the whole but violent with greater than average strength." Greer noticed on the of the pistols that the Ogrons had dropped and carefully picked it up, the Doctor saw him and said with an edge of caution in his voice. "That is a disruptor pistol, one shot could disintegrate a person so be careful." Greer carefully held the weapon away from himself to heed the Doctor's warning and pointed it at a rock in the distance and pulled the trigger. A green energy blast hit the rock blowing off a chunk off of the stone. Seeing that it was still working and easily enough to use especially when taking into account their own diminished stock of ammunition General Young told his people.

"Grab those blasters or whatever you call them. We might need them later." Kathy meanwhile turned to the Doctor and asked with an incredulous expression on her face.

"Are all aliens like this?" The Doctor quickly turned to her and said quickly.

"No of course not. There are wonderful lifeforms out there these are just some of the worse examples." Kathy looked at him remembering the trading post and some of the lifeforms they had seen there. Not all of them had been that frightening as one had even flirted with Kate, a tall purple coloured humanoid which she had managed to escape thanks to seeing one of the crew in the plaza opposite where they had been standing.

The group carried on through the mist covered wasteland till finally it cleared as they reached the top of a hill. It was a great position to see the area around them and they saw the uneven green covered wasteland stretching out in front and behind. They saw some rocky areas spotted around in the distance and on top of a large mount there was a ruin of some kind. The Doctor turned to face the humans grouped behind him and told them.

"That ruin is the remains of the Dark Tower and that is where we are going. It is in the exact centre of the Death Zone so it represents the half way point." He was distracted from his speech when Clara noticed some dark spots heading towards them high in the sky.

"Doctor." She said looking nervously as the dark spots started getting bigger and bigger trying to get his attention. The rest of the crew could see the dark shapes coming closer but the Doctor with his back still turned so he could not yet see them coming turned to his companion and said frustrated at being interrupted.

"Clara this is rather important." He said but one of the soldiers pointed over his shoulder and asked.

"What are they?" The Doctor whipped around and turned back to face the group when what he had just seen sunk in he slowly turned back to see the now much larger shapes in the cloudy sky. He blinked and turned back to face them and noting the worried look on his face the crew all became more tense as the dark shapes got close enough to see more clearly. Hands tensed on weapons as the twenty or so shapes became more recognisable.

"Are those Pterodactyls?" Peter asked taking a firm hold of Val's hand as fear crept into his mind remembering with some irony that Jurassic Park was one of his favourite movies. The Doctor swallowed before he replied nervously.

"Yeah they are pterodactyls. Now under any other circumstances I would probably be enjoying the sight but exposed on this hill top. Not so much." He said and as the flying dinosaurs got close enough to be seen by everyone who were still frozen in the shock that they were seeing real live dinosaurs and one of the pterodactyl's which was the nearest made to swoop down on the group.

"Run." The Doctor said and the people did not need to be told twice as they finally got out of their stupor and started running down the hill as the flying predators dove in for the attack. Greer saw one flying straight at the group from ahead and he raised one of the Ogron disruptor pistols and fired at it. Flying straight towards him the creature had no time to change its path to avoid the green blast which hit the flying dinosaur head on causing it to burst into atoms. Greer did not have time to marvel at the strange gun and its power before having to duck to avoid the claws of another pterodactyl. As the group ran down the hill the uneven terrain caused some crewmen to be directed away from the main body of people and keeping their heads down to avoid the grasping talons of the pterodactyls they did not realise this as they ran away. As the main group ran down the hill the Doctor who was managing to stand up right shouted to Corporal Barnes the nearest solider with what he needed.

"Give me your radio." The female corporal didn't hesitate to ask why he needed it before unclipping it from her waist and tossing it to him. He caught it and pulled on his sonic screwdriver and pressed it to the small black radio. The group had no warning before a loud and high pitched screech filled the air. The people in the group put their hands over their ears but kept on moving. Over the screech they could not hear the cries of the pterodactyls as the sound repelled them. The Doctor however looked around to see them all flying away in fear and when they were at a big enough distance he switched the radio off and with their ears aching from the punishing noise they had just been subjected to the group stopped to catch their breath. The Doctor smiled at his own quick thinking and handed the radio back to Corporal Barnes who held it like a bomb that was about to go off.

"What did you do?" TJ asked as she took her hands away from her ears which were throbbing.

"Used my screwdriver and the radio to put out a high pitched sound that frightened them off. No permanent harm." He said as he put his sonic screwdriver back in his pocket when Clara and Young who were looking around noticed something.

"Is it just me or where there more of us a few minutes ago?" Clara asked seeing the much smaller group around her. The rest of the people started to notice their missing comrades too and Brody asked with worry in his voice.

"You don't think those creatures got them do you?" Everyone looked even more worried at the people who were their friends or loved ones being eaten by dinosaurs but the Doctor waved it off.

"None of those creatures were strong enough to carry someone off." He said noting that the size of the creatures was rather smaller than would be usual for that species.

"Then where are they?" Young asked his own concern rising as he saw how many of his people were MIA. Camille and Kate were still here, so was Brody and Volker along with a few others but Matt Scott, Rush, James, Kathy Scott, Greer, Eli, Chloe, Claire, Lisa Park and a few others were nowhere in sight.

"I don't know, but if they are okay then they'll head for the ruins of the Dark Tower." The Doctor said remembering the speech that he had been giving before he had been so rudely interrupted by those Pterodactyls. He pointed up to the now much nearer stone ruin and with a hesitant pause Camille said.

"I hope you are right."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Claire found herself in a rocky area with Corporal Selene Howard and Molly O'Sullivan they looked around only to see stone with pools of mucky water in different places around the tall cliffs. It reminded Claire of some the slate quarries that were scattered around Wales. They all stopped as they wondered what to do next.

"We could try and retrace our steps?" Selene suggested but Molly just shook her head and said.

"Can you be sure of the direction you were running? Because I can't." They all looked around feeling helpless. Claire was about to suggest that they try to get to higher ground so they could try and find something recognisable to get their bearings on where they were when they heard heavy footsteps crushing the dirt and hitting the rocks and Claire grabbed their arms and pulled them behind a nearby rock out of sight. As the three women peered over rock they were hiding behind to see a group of green giants come into view, they were unlike anything the three of them had ever seen. They seemed reptilian with a scaly armoured suit of some kind rather than skin standing at nearly seven feet tall. They had large red spots were eyes should be and a green mouth that was the only visible part of whatever might be underneath. They seemed slow and bulky but given their tremendous size and hard looking scales they were intimidating. One of them looked slightly different in that it seemed to have breast shaped lumps on its chest piece and two smaller versions at about five foot tall. The tallest male, the female and the two smaller males were all walking ahead of the other three.

Three of them seemed arranged against the group. The tallest of them snarled at the creatures arranged against them speaking in a hissing sound.

"So this is what has become of the great race of Ice Warriors?" It hissed angrily at the other three. "Killing their own leaders to prove a point? Innocent women and children?"

The other three did not bother responding to the accusation before they raised their gauntlet covered hands and then the three women that were hiding behind the rock put their hands firmly over their ears as the loudest screech that the three of them had ever heard filled the air. The air itself seemed to shake with the noise. Peaking over the rocks they were hiding behind the three women saw the three opposing giants holding up their gauntlet covered arms which had a cylinder fixed on each one which was glowing. But the horrifying thing was the four unarmed Ice Warriors who lacked the same cylinder all visibly tensed as they fell to their knees as if in the most terrible pain imaginable before slipping onto their backs or fronts and ceased moving. The three women that were from Earth all stared on with wide eyes as the warriors stopped firing and kicked the bodies on the ground to make sure they were dead. Daring to take their hands away from their ears Molly asked in a desperate whisper.

"What the hell was that?" Claire answered her in the same tense whisper.

"A sonic weapon! It causes severe vibrations rather that blasts of energy or firing a projectile. It could rupture your brain inside your skull with even leaving the slightest outside mark! I've read some papers on the applications of sonic weapons but we have never tried to make anything like that yet!"

"We need to get out of here." Molly said as a doctor she could picture the damage a weapon like that would do quite vividly. She was looking around when Selene grabbed her arm and told him in a hissed whisper.

"There's no cover they would have us in flash. Any ideas?" Selene asked Claire who bit her lip in nerves as she weighed up what she had seen and estimated their chances. Taking note of the assault rifle Selene was carrying she gave her assessment.

"Your rifle would have no effect if that armour of theirs is as dense as I think it is. I'm not sure my particle magnum would stop them either before they take us down." She said peaking over the rock they were using for cover and saw that the three warriors were in no hurry to leave. Worried that if they did not leave some they might find the concealed women Claire looked around for a distraction that they might be able to use when she saw the enormous piles of stone that lay around them. Some of them looked very unstable so she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before focusing her attention on the closest pile to the warriors and concentrated hard on the middle of the pile. It started to shake gently before getting worse. Hearing rocks shake the warriors turned to look only to have barely a second to react as the pile became so unstable that the rocks fell down straight on top of them. Molly and Selene despite knowing about Claire's powers were astonished at what had just happened. They all looked down to where the rocks had fallen saw the odd gauntlet sticking out from underneath the huge pile of stone. Feeling more confident at the lack of movement the three women emerged from their hiding place and stared at the pile. Claire herself remained focused and told Selene and Molly.

"We need to get moving. If we can find those ruins the Doctor was talking about then maybe we can catch up with the others." Claire said remembering the direction that the group was heading towards before they were separated. Selene looked up from the pile and with a hesitant nod the three of them all tried to find a way out of the rocky area they had found themselves in.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Meanwhile in another part of the Death Zone Vanessa James who was leading ten of the people who had become separated from the main group was crouching down to avoid being hit by the creatures she and her group had been unfortunate enough to encounter. There were six of them, all nearly six foot tall covered from head to toe in silver or shiny grey metal armour. There was no hint as to what might be beneath it but they had opened fire the moment they had seen the humans approaching. Returning fire they discovered to their horror that bullets just could not penetrate the metal armour that covered the creatures and unfortunately her group had none of the Ogron pistols that they had salvaged earlier. The creatures carried strange looking small rifles that sent out blasts of blue energy which had nearly struck them before they had dived for cover.

Vanessa pulled out her particle magnum and with pin point accuracy which was remarkable with how little time she had hit one of the creatures in the head and thankfully her particle magnum was powerful enough to blast through the metal covering the head area. The creature fell down dead and as she ducked back under cover Vanessa noticed what looked like a human skull on the inside. She sat on her knees as she processed what she had just seen, although they looked slimmer they did remind her of those weird metal men that had invaded Earth while pretending ghosts in 2007. She remembered the name that they had given in their chilling declaration that they were there to turn all humans in the same as them, uncaring and unfeeling near machines with the only thing left of the genuine human being was the twisted brain inside a metal skull. The Cybermen that what they had called themselves she remembered. She had been stationed in Kabul at the time and had joined her follow marines in fighting the horrible creatures. So many of her friends had been killed that day she had broken down in tears after it was finally over. Most of them had been young fresh troops like her, half of them had been in the same boot camp with her. Amongst the dead had been her childhood sweetheart, Martin Duval. They had known each other since they were in preschool all the way to high school and he had been her date to the prom. They had lost their virginity to each other that night, joined the marines the following day. Trained together, even planned to get married when they had enough money on their own not wanting to be a burden on their parents. But during the heat of battle one of the Cybermen had trapped them in a basement without ammunition or grenades and she had turned to Martin who had kissed her before taking his last pack of C-4 and charged straight at the Cyberman who had yet to notice them. He detonated it killing both the Cyberman and himself to save her life and yet nearly burying her alive. She could still remember the expression on his face like a photograph in front of her eyes. His eyes wild with fear but not stopping for a moment in hesitation determined to save her life even though it was going to cost him his. She had remained trapped in the basement for nearly two days but that while one of the worse experiences of her life had been nothing compared to facing Martin's parents on her return to the States. They having seen the horrible metal men themselves did not blame her but when they had asked her how he had died she found herself in floods of tears as she told them.

His death had been one of the most traumatic events of her life but even though she still felt that pain deep inside but stronger than that was the deep hatred she still carried for the creatures that had taken Martin from her. Her anger started to boil over and she decided to put it to use. Focusing her telepathy on the Cyberman at the rear of the group and projected all the rage she could draw on and forced it into his brain. She couldn't see from her position but the Cyberman stopped moving forward towards the group and starting shaking as if it was having a fit before it started making noise in its computerised voice that sounded like roars of anger. The afflicted Cyberman looked around as it howled in rage and saw the other Cybermen. The anger that was being projected into its head filled it up making him hate everything around it, especially its own kind. So it lifted its rifle and started firing at them. Two were caught in the back and killed before they had time to turn around and realise they were under attack by the own kind. Another Cyberman was gunned down by the rogue before it was shot by the lone survivor putting it out of its misery. Dunning wasted no time and without any thought for himself he dived out towards the first Cybermen that had been downed and grabbed its rifle before turning towards the lone remaining Cyberman before it could turn around and opened fire. It seemed that although this strange variant of the Cybermen was immune to bullets its armoured casing could not withstand its own weaponry. The machine creature cried out as it felt over and toppled to the ground. The danger now over the group emerged from their protective cover and walked over to meet Dunning who was marvelling his new weapon. It was very compact being no bigger than an Uzi submachine with a tarnished golden finish and was easy enough to operate. Kathy who had exhausted her own pistol of ammunition gratefully picked up one of the dropped Cyber guns. Varro went over to his girlfriend and asked Vanessa becoming concerned at the stormy look on her face.

"Are you alright?" She after she took a calming breath and wrestled her anger back under control gave him a small smile and expected his hand which he offered her.

"I'm okay, I just had to deal with some anger issues." She commented off hand without going into too much detail. Letting go of Varro's hand she went over to the Cyberman she had transmitted her anger into and carefully opened its exposed circuits which had been revealed by the same blast that had killed it and she saw some of the circuits that had not been damaged in the blast were showing signs of degradation probably from lack of maintenance. These Cybermen must have been here for a long time for circuits that must have been once very robust to have become so badly corroded.

Shaking herself out of her brief analysis of the dead Cybermen she saw the rest of her group had retrieved the Cyber guns and she nodded as they looked to her before she turned around and scanned the horizon before she saw the hill with the ruins that the Doctor had been leading them towards in the distance. She holstered her pistol and told her people.

"Let's move out."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Elsewhere in the Death Zone Captain Matthew Scott was leading himself, Greer his long standing buddy, Doctor Rush, Ginn and Tasia two of the former members of the Lucian Alliance that had joined them across the desolate area towards the tower ruins, he was kicking himself for getting separated from the main group and more importantly on a personal level from Chloe. When they had been attacked by those flying dinosaurs he had tried to stay close to her but somewhere in the confusion they had become separated. He could only hope she was alright but right now he was dealing with Rush.

"Captain we need to get somewhere undercover. If those creatures are still around then we could be facing an attack, one that would be hard to fend off with the limited resources we have available." Rush said insistently but Matt refused to budge on his plan of action.

"If the others are alright then they'll head for the ruins that we saw. It's the middle of the Death Zone so we should have a better chance of finding them there." Matt told him firmly as they climbed over a rough patch of ground. Greer saw Rush opened his mouth like he was going to speak again and said clearly without emotion despite however worried he might have been about Lisa for now.

"We are going to the ruins." Rush seeing that there was no reasoning with the two men felt resigned as he wondered about the likely hood of another attack. Tasia was holding Ginn who looked around with wide eyes filled with fear over Eli being missing. Ginn asked Tasia looking at the older woman with desperation.

"Do you think Eli is going to be alright?" She had never imagined getting caught up in an 'adventure' as big as this. Eli had been her rock to cling to after she had found out her entire home had been destroyed by the Lucian Alliance under orders of a man she had once considered a friend. He had introduced her to his mother who had been more than happy to welcome Ginn into her life, she had been given a new home and more importantly a new life and a family by the crew of _Destiny_ and when the ship had been destroyed by the Daleks and so many of her co-workers killed Eli had been her rock to cling to all over again especially during the hard journey across the mountains where she had been nearly paralysed by her fear of heights. They had now been separated and she was terrified that something had happened to him. She did not want to lose the most important person in her new life and she certainly did not want to be stuck in this horrible place forever. Tasia put a comforting arm around the younger woman's shoulders. She reassured Ginn who she had come to see almost as a younger sister.

"I'm sure he is fine. He's probably worrying more about you than you are about him." Tasia said putting on a smile for Ginn's benefit. It seemed to cheer the red head up a bit and she relaxed slightly in Tasia's arms.

Just then they came to a small lake. Nowhere close to the size or beauty of Lake Abydos but unmistakably a lake. It also unlike Lake Abydos it looked distinctly uninviting the blue water looking freezing cold and the banks appeared grimy with algae on the rocks. Matt was wondering if they might dare look into getting some fresh water to preserve their canteens so they would last longer. So making his decision he led the group down to the shore of the lake where he was about to ask Rush whether it was safe to drink when he saw something emerging out of the water. Greer ever alert for potential threats saw it too and both men tensed their hands around their weapons. The single creature they had seen suddenly was joined by four more which now were more visible as they rose out of the water. They were strange looking creatures, vaguely humanoid with a head, two arms and two legs and feet. But that was the only think that looked familiar to them. The heads looked almost like a fish with silver eyes with a row of gills going down a long neck which led to a snout. Their skin if it could be called that was dark green in colour and they seemed to be wearing some kind of dark grey suit of some kind. The humans stared at the strange creatures only to tense when they saw them raise strange disc shaped devices and pointed right at them. Reacting quickly as their training and experience kicked in Matt and Greer raised their weapons just as the blast of white energy streaked past their heads. The two soldiers wasted no time as their fingers pulled the triggers of their weapons, Tasia too raised the Ogron disruptor she was carrying and fired. The creatures had no time to move as they were hit by the fire from the humans cutting them down with ease.

The humans watched as the creatures fell down seeming like it was in slow motion. Rush and Ginn who had not been doing the shooting stared as the creatures floated, drifting out towards the centre of the lake for a moment before they sank into the water.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The last people that had been separated from the main group found themselves wandering across the edge of a small cliff. The trio was made up of Chloe Armstrong, Eli Wallace and Lisa Park who were in the most dangerous position of all the people that had been separated from the main group. None of them were soldiers and therefore they were unarmed and none of them was trained for survival in these conditions. Add to the fact that they had no idea what sort of creatures that lived or had been brought here so taking all these factors into account they were the most vulnerable of all the people in the Death Zone. The three of them stayed closely together feeling very conscious of how vulnerable they were. Worse because a strong mist surrounded the immediate area meaning it was nearly impossible to see anything more than thirty feet away so they had no way of knowing in which direction the ruins that the group had been heading for were.

Eli was struggling to be brave, this was the first time he had been on his own like this without someone more experienced around to either help him or tell him what to do. Lisa and Chloe were just as nervous as he was if not more so. They were not just worried about their own survival but the survival of their significant others. Eli tried to put a confident grin on to try and cheer the two women with him up but all he could manage was an uneasy smile that looked rather forced and to tell them both.

"I'm sure the others are alright. We just need to find that ruin." Chloe and Lisa looked unconvinced but said nothing as the three of them tugging their coats closer to keep kept walking forwards hoping to get out of this fog so they might be able to see the area more clearly and hopefully find their way. Suddenly Lisa noticed something moving in the fog to her right.

"What was that?" She asked pointing to the area where she was sure that she had seen something moving but when the other two members of their small group turned to look the figure that had spooked Lisa had disappeared deeper into the mist. Chloe started thinking that Lisa's mind was playing tricks on her because of how anxious she was Eli did too. It was something she could relate to as she was just as anxious herself.

"Maybe you just imagined it?" Chloe suggested with a slight smile hoping to ease the other woman's nerves, Lisa bit her lip and looked intently into the area where she was sure that she had seen the figure. With an uneasy shrug she agreed but only reluctantly struggling to convince herself.

"Probably." Even though Lisa was certain that she had seen a vaguely humanoid shape in that fog.

They carried on for a while and gradually the fog seemed to be thinning. Lisa however who was at the rear of the very small party could have sworn she had heard footsteps behind her only for there to be nothing there when she turned around. Eli and Chloe had not heard anything their sole focus being getting out of the fog and back to the main group and their loved ones. Lisa then stopped as she heard a fallen twig from a small tree snap as someone or something stepped on it. But she had no time to cry out as a firm hand went over her mouth and she was lifted off her feet. She tried to scream out to warn Eli and Chloe but the hand over her mouth prevented her from making a sound as she was pulled into the mist.

Eli and Chloe did not notice that Lisa was gone immediately but when Chloe turned around to see how the other woman was doing she saw immediately that she was not there. But then before she could tell Eli she heard a person at her side and like Lisa moments before her she felt her mouth being covered by a hand and was lifted off her feet and carried off into the mist.

It did not take Eli long to realise that both women were gone. He stopped still as his fear mounted looking around into the mist for a sign that anyone was there. He did not have to wait long as several dark figures appeared obscured by the mist. Eli felt like this might genuinely be the end, his time to die. His breathing speeded up but he was not as scared or as inexperienced as he had been when they had first boarded _Destiny_ which felt like it had happened a life time ago now. He closed his eyes for a moment intending to look his killer straight in the eye only to be blindsided when one of the dark figures that had appeared surprised him from behind and firmly put a black bag over Eli's head turning his world dark.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As the main group of the former crew of _Destiny_ arrived at the ruins where the Dark Tower had once stood and where greeted by thankfully nothing, the creatures in the Death Zone seemed to give the Dark Tower a wide berth fearing the structure. Whether this was something that had been programmed into them when they had been brought here or if it was an echo of Rassilon's power left from the time when he had slept in this tower for millions of years was immaterial they just avoided it. General Young and the others had been hoping that some of their missing people might have arrived there ahead of them but that hope had been dashed. Young was getting especially anxious as the time ticked by despite the Doctor's reassurances who he still did not fully trust. He wanted to trust him but he did not have that luxury as the leader of the crew. Camille was doing her level best to keep people calm and to get them rested for the rest of the journey when their lost sheep had come back to the herd.

"Where are they? Can you see them yet?" Young called to Kate who had climbed onto one of the sturdier piles of debris to get a better view of the surrounding area. Kate looked around desperately trying to get a sign of their people. She was about to climb down after seeing nothing when she noticed a set of small figures making their way along a gully towards the Dark Tower. She felt a mix of hope and concern wondering if it was their own people or more monsters come to attack them. She called down to Young.

"There is a group of somethings heading towards us. Cannot tell if it is our people or more creatures though." Young looked up at her and feeling the same mixture of hope and the need for caution so he turned to his people and told them.

"We have incoming, get into positions." He ordered settling on caution rather than keeping his people out in the open. The crew wasted no time in moving deeper into the ruins and out of sight except for the Doctor and his companion who stayed in the open with him ignoring his glare to get back. Young's hand went to his pistol as he put the two to the back of his mind and turned to see the newcomers from his partly concealed position. As the seconds rolled by and everyone got more tense they all nearly jumped as Kate shouted out.

"It's Matt and he's got Greer, Tasia, Rush and Ginn with him." The atmosphere in the ruins instantly relaxed and rose slightly as some of their people reappeared. Coming out of their concealed positions they all rushed forward to greet the newcomers who themselves felt relieved at being back with the rest of their people.

"Sir." Matt said in relief as he and his people saw the very welcome sight of his superior officer. The others were relieved too and moved forward to re-join the others when Matt noticed that some people were missing he turned to Young who told him.

"Some other people got separated too, we will wait for them here." Young told him firmly but Matt who had noticed a certain brunette was not here turned back looking anxious the relief on his face evaporating in a flash.

"Sir I would like to go and start looking for our people." Though especially he was thinking of Chloe but Young did not budge on his position in this situation.

"Not a chance Captain, if you went missing then we would have to send out a search party for you too. Everyone knew that we were heading for the ruins so this is where they should be heading for."

Matt looked like he wanted to argue as did Greer and Ginn who had noticed their own partners were not there with the main group either. But the fierce look on Young's face stopped them in their tracks. Despite being a relatively easy going man Everett Young had a strong presence that fixed them in place and made them see the logic in his argument.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Eli had no idea where he was being taken as the hood stayed on all the time he was being dragged wherever these mysterious people were taking him. He stumbled a few times as his feet hit something probably a rock or lost his footing on uneven ground but his captors dragging him along with no hesitation what so ever or apparent difficulty, he felt his wrists being tied in something but could not tell what. Finally after a couple of minutes the hood was pulled off of Eli's head and as his eyes readjusted to the light disorientating him for a moment he regained his senses and saw to his left and to his right that Chloe and Lisa where both with him. Immediately he felt relief at them being okay but he soon noticed they were bound the same as him and when he tried pulling at whatever it was binding his hands the strong material refused to budge. He then got his first glimpse of his captors and was completely shocked at what greeted his eyes.

They were human! About twenty of them crowded around the area which led to a cave where more people might be waiting inside wearing some kind of military combat suit and carrying weapons that looked distinctly like they originated on Earth. Thinking that he might be able to talk his way out of this Eli turned to the closest of the people that were holding them, a very tall and muscular man that looked like a professional boxer with his biceps clearly visible from the rolled up sleeves of the shirt he was wearing only for his heart to sink when the man started to him first in a language that Eli had never heard before. Seeing the widening eyes of Lisa and Chloe he could tell that they had no idea what the man was saying either.

"Sorry I only speak English." Eli said slowly hoping that they might get lucky enough for someone in the group to understand but that vain hope was dashed when the tall man came over and seized Eli by the scruff of the neck and lifted him clear off his feet causing Eli's eyes to widen as his feet desperately move in mid-air trying to find firm footing. Lisa and Chloe both started saying for the big man to put Eli down but their complaints fell on deaf ears that could not understand a word that they were saying. The man started repeating his words to Eli that might as well have been gibberish.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

On their way out of the rocky area that they had found themselves in Claire, Selene and Molly all looked around for any sign of the wrecked tower that they had all been heading towards before they had been separated when Claire who was starting to think they were finally back on track when they saw the ruin in the distance was distracted when she was hit by an overwhelming sense of fear and confusion but it felt strangely familiar too. She stopped still her head moving around as she tried to find the source. Her companions stopped and turned to face and asked with concern.

"What is it?" Molly asked wondering if Claire had noticed a problem. Selene tightened her grip on her rifle when Claire spoke back.

"It is like I felt someone close by, someone scared and confused." Claire said scratching her head trying to figure out where the wave of emotional energy had come from. She stretched her own telepathy out to try and get a fix on it while struggling to figure out what was so familiar about it. Then just as she found the source and turned her head towards it, the answer clicked in her head. "Eli." She murmured and started running towards the area where she had felt her friend in such distress. Looking at each other for a moment in confusion and helplessness, Molly and Selene followed. They soon reached the area where Claire had traced the emotional energy coming from as she peered over the hill she could see Eli, Chloe and Lisa all being forced to stand by surprisingly a group of humans in military uniforms. While Claire did not recognise the people it was uniforms that looked familiar to her. Then as Molly and Selene caught up and saw the scene unfolding only a short distance away for themselves Claire managed to catch a few words that the soldiers were saying to her captive friends and a quick telepathy glance at their thoughts sent Claire's eye brows rising. Selene started sizing up the situation wondering how they might rescue their friends till Claire without warning got to her feet and started walking down the hill with her hands raised much to the dismay of her two companions who had no idea what she was doing as they only saw three of their friends being interrogated roughly by unknown humans in a language they did not understand only to be more surprised when Claire started speaking it right back to the unknown humans.

" _We come in peace, we mean you not harm."_ Claire said in the soldiers own language who instantly turned to face this new intruder and looked surprised to hear their own language.

"You understand them?" Chloe asked relieved to see a familiar face and better yet someone who could apparently communicate with these strange people.

"Russian. They are speaking Russian." Claire said to her friends quickly before speaking to the soldiers again in their native tongue. _"My name is Claire, I come from Earth like you."_ She told them men who were wearing the standard combat uniform of the Russian Air Force, she saw them all the time at the SGC which had three Russian SG teams now, she even had a coffee with them sometimes in the base's mess. The lead soldier who dropped Eli and turned to face Claire as she now came close enough for them to speak without raising their voice looked very surprised at her words and answered with guarded curiosity.

" _How are you here? Where you kidnapped like us?"_ He asked Claire started to get a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach when she remembered what the Doctor had said about the Death Zone and what the Timelords used to do here.

" _In a manner of speaking yes. I need to speak to your leader."_ Claire said with a reassuring smile, these people were cautious but looked intrigued and even hopeful at having humans from Earth here with them. The lead soldier turned to the cave and shouted.

" _Sir, we have people from Earth."_ For a moment there was no reaction till a young woman about Claire's age walked out of the darkness of the cave with about ten other people all in Russian uniform too. She was average height with dark hair that was probably once a bob cut but had started to grow longer now just going past her shoulders. She was a slight woman physically fit without being muscular and Claire noticed bared the rank of a junior lieutenant. She gave a quick look around the rest of the people present and saw that they were all enlisted, the dark haired lieutenant seemed to be the only officer here. So turning back to face her Claire asked as politely as she could.

" _Are you the leader here?"_ Only for the dark haired lieutenant to surprise her by answering in English.

"Da, I lead here and yes I speak English. Are you their leader?" The lieutenant asked and Claire shook her head.

"No we were separated from our leader, we were heading for the meeting point when we heard your man questioning my friend here." Claire told them trying not to reveal her psychic powers unless she really had too. She could feel how desperate these people were although they were trying to hide it and knew to tread carefully. She did not want to spook them and asked as calmly as she could. "My name is Claire Williams I'm a scientist assigned to the SGC, what is your name?"

"Junior Lieutenant Alina Zhukov." The dark haired woman said with pride. "Chief Weapon's officer on the _Korolev_." The woman's name did not stand out much but the name of the ship really shocked Claire.

" _Korolev_!" Claire exclaimed in surprise Eli did not get the significance of the name.

"That was one of the key Soviet Union Rocket engineers and designers during the Space Race right?" Eli asked wondering what was going on as did the other _Destiny_ crewmembers until Claire enlightened them.

"The _Korolev_ was also the third X-304 constructed by the SGC and was given to the Russians after launch in exchange for the US gaining full possession of the Stargate. It fought in the Battle of P3Y-229 against the Ori incursion where it was destroyed. We thought only six crewmembers managed to escape. Is Colonel Chekov with you?" She asked only to regret it when Alina's face tensed.

"No he did not come with us. All we know is that the ship was exploding all around us when suddenly we were engulfed by this silver light and then we found ourselves here. There was a hundred of us when we arrived six months ago and it was weird because we had weapons, equipment and supplies from the _Korolev_ just left here for us. We tried to escape but we just kept running into this force field wall and then there were the monsters." Alina said looking angry at the mention of the alien creatures that lived in here. "We have lost seventy people to those creatures and still no idea where we are or how to get out of here." Alina finished bitterly she had only assumed command after the ship's engineer and the survivors' original leader had been killed and she had tried her best but she was still only in her mid-twenties and a junior officer so keeping control of a group of enlisted that were low on moral and older than her was proving to be a challenge.

It was a godsend to find other humans here that might be willing to help them. Maybe they might know a way to escape or at least have more of an idea as to what was going on. The red haired woman that was speaking to her sounded British and one of the others that was standing on a nearby hill had an American marine uniform on so at least they were from the same planet as her and her people. It was not much of a link but it was better than nothing and they certainly were not silver or green men that were trying to kill them all.

Claire meanwhile had noticed another problem, the battle in which the _Korolev_ had been destroyed took place in 2006. It was 2011 on Earth right now so the Russian crew had been pulled five years into the future and did not know that if they did manage to return to Earth then they find themselves out of time and with families that might have moved on; husbands and wives might have remarried, children would have grown up and so on. It made Claire very uneasy about having to break the news to these people but decided to hold off for now till they could get out of the Death Zone and preferably on the way towards getting home. Weirder still though was whoever had brought them here had taken things from the _Korolev_ to give the Russian crew a chance to survive here. Why was that? Claire wondered to herself but now was not the time so she spoke again to Alina.

"We are meeting the rest of our group at the ruins in the centre of this place, we have a guide that can get us out of here and he claims the same people that brought us all here can send us all home. Will you and your people join us?" She asked knowing time was getting on and she wanted to get back on the road to finding a way home. Alina looked indecisive for a moment wanting to take the opportunity that this red head was offering something that would give them hope, a gift that they had been without for months since they had arrived here in this strange landscape but she had to think what was best for her soldiers only for her to remember that since arriving here they had been attacked by strange monsters all the time and lost over two thirds of their group. Going with them was a step into the unknown and she wasn't quite sure she could trust the Americans but it was their only chance of getting home.

"Alright, we'll come with you." Alina said making her decision with some reservation and turned to her soldiers and told them in their native tongue. _"We are joining forces with the other humans to find a way out of this place and return back home to Russia."_

The soldiers looked like they had some of the same reservations that she did about working with the Americans, tensions between both nations from before and after the Cold War which Alina barely remembered hung in the background making it difficult to trust each other. But the mention of a way home brought a hopeful glint to her peoples' eyes that had been missing for so long that it made Alina smile. She turned to Claire and told her.

"None of them can speak English. So if you need to speak to them, tell them in Russian."

"Understood." Claire said with a smile. She like languages something Daniel Jackson had instilled in her during her training at the SGC and she enjoyed speaking to the different nationalities that you found in the base these days in their native tongue which had helped her make a lot of new friends. It was a lot more varied in terms of personnel at the base than it had been in the past, there were now nearly forty active SG teams from various IOA member countries and that was just on the military side. More scientists at the base now came from different nations too so she had more opportunities to practice her language skills in her job as some could not speak English that well if at all. Her lab partner and new assistant was Russian, Karma Belikov a highly intelligent and gifted theoretical physicist that was mute but understood both English and Russian and understood physics better than nearly anyone Claire had ever met.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A half an hour later the rest of the _Destiny_ crew were still waiting at the ruins of the Dark Tower and the crew was now becoming really worried as six members of their group had yet to return. When Vanessa James and her people had made it to the Dark Tower they had all went much revealed and expected the others to return shortly but as the minutes rolled by they grew more and more concerned as there was no sign of their missing crew. Matt and Vanessa both looked over to Young who had replaced Kate as their lookout and were ready to go and start looking for their missing people, only their discipline as professional officers held them in place. Greer was almost ready to go AWOL to go looking for his girlfriend and his people, some of them being his friends when suddenly Young cried out wearing Matt's Cyber shades to scan the area with greater range.

"We have incoming." Everyone tensed up immediately and those who had weapons all got ready for a fight. The Doctor leapt to his feet with surprising grace from where he had decided to take a quick nap while he waited for the rest of the humans to arrive. Clara had been trying to comfort Ginn who was really starting to get worried about Eli who was one of the missing. Young then frowned as he got a better look at the approaching force.

"Hold it Captains." He ordered not wanting to shoot as he was struggling to belief what he was seeing. He could see his six missing people all looking safe and unharmed but behind them were thirty or so new humans all dressed in combat uniforms. He slid down the pile he was using as a boost and handed the shades back to Matt and walked out to meet the newcomers. He immediately felt better seeing Claire, Chloe, Eli, Molly O'Sullivan, Ginn and Lisa Park but his cautious nature was roused when he saw the thirty or so armed men and women walking behind them. He like Claire recognised the uniforms as Russian Air Force from the joint exercises he had participated in over the years. He stepped forward as did the Doctor looking rather surprised to find that there were other humans here and Claire spoke before either man or anyone of the people behind them had a chance while Matt, Ginn and Greer ran out to see their significant others relieved that they were alive.

"General Young may I present the thirty survivors of the X-304 _Korolev_ who arrived here six months ago against their will." She said causing both men to look in surprise at the thirty or so Russians before them but for different reasons. For Young it was that the ship in question had been destroyed over five years previous with nearly all hands. For the Doctor it was a chilling confirmation that someone had indeed started the games again and was bringing fresh people here to fight. He had hoped that this disgrace to everything he stood for was a thing of the past but clearly someone in the upper levels of the leadership of Gallifrey had taken a sick enjoyment in watching these creatures fight and die here. The people around him all looked at the Timelord for an explanation even Clara showing a surprising level of solidarity amongst all the humans present. Even the two Ancients in the group Claire and Vanessa James were looking at him with angry stares. He turned around in a circle as the humans surrounded him and started making his speech putting all of the pent up anger and sadness into his voice as he said each word.

"This is an affront to everything that the Timelords are supposed to stand for, everything I believe in. The High Council of the Timelords has become so arrogant and in love with their power and image that they indulge their sickest whims in games like this where the lifeforms that they consider lesser are placed here to fight for their amusement. Something I will stop and think you people are here to help me. Help me to liberate the universe from their whims and give the innocent people here on Gallifrey a fresh start without the High Council to twist it to their own dark designs." He said and the crew feeling the emotion in his voice began to relax their stares the last doubters finally starting to realise that the Doctor was on their side. They all relaxed their gaze and the Doctor saw the acceptance in their eyes they were with him at last. So he promised them. "I will get you home, but will you first help me?" He asked looking around the group and hoping to see that they were indeed with him. He saw the look in their eyes desperation to get home, fear of the world that they had found themselves on and more importantly to him trust. They trusted him, maybe not his people but at last they trusted him.

As the Doctor was finally accepted by the rest of the _Destiny_ crew, Young turned to face the Russians who all realised that this was the leader of the American group. Alina stepped forward to meet him and he said four words to her.

"Are you with us?" Alina looked deeply into the General's eyes and nodded knowing that this was a man that was born to lead whether he wanted too or not. Her people might not be comfortable following an American but he was a senior officer and certainly a more experienced leader than herself. So she said to him with a salute.

"Junior Lieutenant Alina Zhukov sir. And these are my people." And began introducing them all by name. Young took a moment to memorize the faces and names something he always did with the people under his command. They in turn looked around to study the strange group that they were joining. They were a strange mix of military and civilians, some dressed in obvious Earth style clothing while others were using outfits that looked distinctly alien. They all stood together with little to no division between them. The Russian soldiers all then looked to the man that would apparently be there new leader. The short dark hair and strong gaze and stance all screamed leadership although they all slightly resented having to trust this officer from the outside.

But they were soldiers and following orders was second nature so they all saluted and he in respect saluted back.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The rest of the very long day was spent by the crew of _Destiny_ led by the Doctor and Clara along with their new Russian allies crossing the rest of the Death Zone to the other side and thankfully this time they had no more encounters with monsters. When they arrived the Doctor probed the force field that surrounded the Death Zone to find another opening that they could use and found one relatively quickly. Just like before they had to move through the narrow gap single file till finally all of them had passed through and Claire could honestly say she had never been happier to see an orange sky which the Russians were mesmerised by.

"Well then." The Doctor said feeling happier now they were out of the Death Zone. "To the town of Hope."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**


	5. Chapter 5

_I do not own Doctor Who or Stargate Universe. This is not intended to make profit and is purely for enjoyment._

 **Chapter 5 – Town Trouble**

As the crew set up camp about a mile out from the Death Zone the light of day was dimming and the crew had to be ready for another day of walking tomorrow. However by early evening tomorrow according to the Doctor they should have arrived at the town where they should hopefully be able to get some help at long last. According to the Doctor it was named Hope. The name alone was enough to give them all a laugh from the irony of it.

"Another day's walk and we should make it there by tomorrow evening." The Doctor said cheerfully as they all got ready for an uncomfortable night camping outside again. The Russians all had camping gear in the supplies that had been dumped with them from the _Korolev_ and quickly with well-practised skill set up a number of tents and sleeping bags. The _Destiny_ crew looked at them enviously but with a slight grumble lay down with jackets and cloaks turned into make shift pillows and the same blankets that they had been so dependent on during their climb across the mountain while volunteers kept watch in shifts. The Russians bunched together while the Americans all packed together too. Claire sighed at the sight seeing the existing issues between both parties but if they were going to get through this nightmare then they were going to have to work together as a team not as two separate teams that tolerated each other but so far there was nothing she could do about it in particular so she settled down to their last meal of the day as the two suns set. Seeing the rather awe inspiring sight brought a smile back to her face along with the rest of the crew. Clustered around small camp fires the group chatted as they relaxed ready for a nice sleep in preparation for tomorrow which would hopefully bring an end to their travels across the home planet of the Timelords and be a major step in getting home. An hour later as everyone finished their meal of rations or whatever local produce could be acquired General Young stood up and told them all.

"Right people let's get some shut eye, we've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow." Alina then repeated the sentence in Russian for the sake of her own people that did not understand English. The volunteers in the group chose which people would stand guard in first during the night so they would be safe and settled down to try and sleep.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The following morning at the crack of dawn the people all woke up from their sleep. For most people in the military who used to early starts this did not bother them although most of the civilians were slower to wake. As they sat in their makeshift circles they all had a small breakfast with their hair mussed up and their eyes half open as the suns peeked out from behind the horizon. It was an awe inspiring sight for the humans or would have been if they had been more alert to enjoy it as they focused on their small meal. The Doctor was bright and cheerful not needing as much sleep as a human and more annoyingly for the humans in the crew both Claire and Vanessa were bright and cheerful as well even doing some early morning yoga to get ready for the journey today as the sun rose. Their fellow shipmates looked ready to throw daggers at their smiling faces but the two women just ignored the looks around them and went over to the Doctor who was plotting their route on the maps he had.

Clara whose hair was in a big mess from the uncomfortable sleep last night and still half asleep sat next to TJ who had let her long blonde hair down from its usual bun to fall to her mid back. She and the blonde medic/doctor were enjoying a cup of water when Clara feeling the need to break the silence around the circle by saying.

"Have you seen got any plans when you get back to Earth?" TJ looked up surprised but looked upbeat hoping that she would soon be able to return to Earth, smiling she told the English teacher and time travelling adventurer.

"I will hug my children for a week before I let them out of my sight again." TJ said with a faraway look in her eye, not meaning it literally but she certainly would not be leaving them for quite some time after they were back with her again. Molly O'Sullivan who was used to early hours due to having to work in a hospital smiled too before telling them.

"I'm going to see my family, I haven't seen any of them in six months and my niece is going to be three years old next month. Can't miss that." Molly said with a smile as she thought about her huge family back in Ireland. The average number of children in her family was about four going back at least four generations to her great-grandmother who had four children, who had each gone on to have four children of their own each who had then gone on to have four children of their own. Being the youngest of her family Molly had yet to settle down but while she was publically a devoted career woman she did intend to have a family someday, hopefully when she found the right man.

"I hope to see my family too. I have three sisters all older than me with children of their own." Alina said as she came over to their circle, the only Russian who could speak English she had heard their conversation and hoped to join it. Most of her people were in little mood to talk. General Young had told her last night about her and her people being pulled five years into the future. She had wanted to believe that he was lying but his sincerity had won her over and she had decided to break the unpleasant news to her troops immediately rather than wait and they had not taken the news well. She had consoled them with the fact that they were still alive and so were their loved ones so the news was nowhere near as bad as it could have been. The news that they should be soon returning to Earth had lifted their spirits but it was tainted by the news of the lost time.

The Americans and British around her smiled as they started to talk about what they were hoping to do when they returned to Earth.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Well if we travel through the Glorious Garden of the Great Mother, we should be able to reach the town by early this afternoon." The Doctor told the two young women sitting next to him as they studied the map. Hearing about this Garden Vanessa felt with a slight worry due to what had happened on the last shortcut they had taken despite how beneficial it had been the need to ask.

"What is this Glorious Garden of the Great Mother?" Seeing the worried look on the female marine's face the Doctor was quick to assure her that there was no danger.

"The Garden is a sanctuary devoted to one thing…life. There is nothing there except for flowers so unless you suffer from severe hay fever there is nothing to worry about." He told them not wanting to spoil the surprise of the treat they were about to get. The Garden of the Great Mother was an amazing place to be, his grandmother had often taken him there as a child and he was always able to relax and just play there with wild abandon causing trouble as he ran through the flowers and trees annoying the gardeners that had cared for the place before they were replaced by automated systems. When he himself became a grandfather that was one of the first places he had taken his young granddaughter. A smile graced his mouth as he recalled being that old man back when he had been so young watching with delight as his dark haired grandchild ran through the flower beds and in-between the trees just like he had and getting into trouble just like he had at her age with him panting to keep up but loving every moment of it as she had. Both women noticed he had lost himself in a memory and felt his mood improve as he became lost in the treasured recollection and decided to leave him alone. Being around him as much as they had in recent days the two women had easily sensed or seen the loneliness and sadness in the old man, all the regret and guilt that he seemed to carry with him especially at getting them into this mess and were happy to see him looking slightly more upbeat.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The group moved out less than twenty minutes later and started making their way towards the town. The group now more awake as they moved felt a lot better and looked more cheerful than they had on previous days. At last they felt they were making progress in getting back home. But when they arrived at the perimeter of the forest that surrounded the garden. Everyone looked up to see the tree tops that must have reached nearly a hundred feet all shooting up towards the orange sky which was still a sight that the humans were unused too.

The Doctor turned around to address the group.

"Now this forest is the entrance to the Garden of the Great Mother. It is the shortest route to the town but." He said with glee on his face. "You are in for a treat."

Feeling sceptical after the Death Zone the crew followed him as they walked into the forest they all became tenser as they wondered what post Time War Gallifrey was going to throw at them this time. As they moved through the trees they then got their first glimpse of the animal life of this planet. In the tress of the forest around them they could see what like a koala but with a smaller nose and more alarmingly six legs! Some of the group pulled back in fear only for the Doctor to walk up to one of the strange creatures and petted it just like you would a dog. Clara following his example did the same.

"Flubble." The Doctor said with a warm smile. "I tried to hide one of these as a pet when I was at the Academy but when it started making its mating call I had to get rid of it." He said with a wistful look on his face remembering the experience. Some of the braver members of the group now walked slowly up to the Flubbles and gently began petting the strange creatures who purred with the attention being paid to them like a cat might. Just as they were getting used to the Flubbles when a swarm of butterfly like insects flew past them soundlessly through the trees. The array of colours was incredible as was the small shower of dust that seemed to fall in their wake. The crew watched the strange creatures as they flew overhead and the Doctor told them with obvious joy in his voice which brought a smile to Clara's face too.

"Flutterwings. And five of the best species too; Silver band, Madrigal, Wild Endeavour, Blue Crystal and Perdition." He told the young human woman who stared at them entranced by their vibrant colours.

"They are beautiful." The Doctor smiled even wider at the genuine adoration for the creatures. He had missed all this so much during the years since the Time War thinking it was all gone forever. The crew were sorry to see the beautiful insects disappear as they flew away and got back on their journey thinking nothing could be lovelier on this planet than what they had just seen.

Only when they finally cleared the tree line they were proved wrong at what they saw.

Ahead of them was possibly the greatest garden that any of them had ever seen, in fact to call it a garden was almost a disservice given how beautiful it was. The Doctor at the front of the group said to Clara who was at his side as usual.

"The Garden of the Great Mother was planted as a celebration of life, everything here is alive in its own way. The atmosphere is so rich with energy that you cannot help but feel good." He said taking a deep sniff of the air around him and sighing in pleasure at how good it tasted. Clara followed his example and when she took her deep breath she was almost light headed at the pure aroma of the air around her. It was like breathing in joy, she felt all her worries and concerns fade away in an aura of pure hope and she was filled with a renewed burst of energy that flowed through her body. She turned to the Doctor with a big smile and told him.

"It's beautiful." He smiled back happy that she liked the place.

Behind the rest of the group all started breathing in the heady atmosphere and smiles started to replace the weary frowns that they had all had before clearing the tree line. Taking a firm step forward the group eagerly followed the Doctor into the garden. Eli remarked.

"I wish I had my Kino."

The crew could only agree as around them on the golden stone paths was flowers and other plants of such variety that they had never seen. Statues of creatures and people made out of the same golden stone as the path stood tall and proud all around them glittering in the sunlight and a small waterway running around the whole sight but around them were flower beds stretching in every direction. Flowers both big and small but with such a variety of colours that it was a feast for the eyes. Reds, greens, blues, yellows, pinks, whites, blacks, oranges, brilliant yellows and dazzling purples. Flutterwings with a similar dazzling array of colours flew all over the garden adding another touch to this amazing scene. There were all kinds of different shades too some reds were nearly pink while others were dark crimson. Pale Earth Sky blues to midnight blue. As they followed the paths through the amazing garden everyone felt revitalized as they breathed in the amazing air.

They chatted happily as they followed the Doctor through the garden feeling amazing as they went, Clara with a huge smile on her face asked her best friend.

"What is it about this place that makes it feel so…" She asked him but struggled to find an appropriate word to describe the feeling this place was giving her and the other people. The Doctor smiled as he suggested one.

"Perfect?" He smiled and Clara nodded so he explained. "All the plants here with the machines that maintain them give off special artron energy like the Tardis but specially processed so it creates an aura of pure happiness, calm and safety. This garden is a place to come and be renewed. Some Timelords come here after a difficult regeneration to stabilize, the atmosphere here proves a great tonic for the shock." The Doctor told her and Clara could only wish she had been able to bring the Doctor here when he had last regenerated rather than having to deal with those weird robots that had been stripping human beings for parts. Vastra, Jenny and Strax had been great but this place in Clara's mind would have been a better environment for the Doctor to come into his new incarnation but she thought with a sigh you had to play the cards you were dealt.

As they moved deeper into the garden they all stopped as they reached the centre. Their eyes widened as they saw the structure that stood before them. It was a small pyramid, nowhere near the size of the one at Giza back on Earth but easily reaching a football field across while standing thirty feet high. It shone like the statues as it looked like it was made of the same material. As they got closer they saw that carved into its four faces was a symbol of some sort like a strange numeral eight inside a circle. But more impressive was that the entire pyramid was a fountain with clear water running down its smooth surfaces into the small waterway that encircled it like a moat.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As much as the crew had wanted to stay in the garden they all knew that they had to move on so they kept on walking till they reached the trees on the other side of the garden and with one last reluctant look back left the garden to complete what they were hoping would be the last leg of their journey. As they emerged from the small forest that encircled the garden onto a large red grassy plain that stretched out before them. In the distance they could see a cluster of buildings and everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief, now maybe they could get some help in getting home.

As the group moved forward towards the town which grew larger as they drew closer. Arriving on the edge of town they saw the strangely shaped buildings but there was nothing so alien that it was shocking. What was shocking however was that there was nobody there, they entered through one of the side roads only to see streets that were devoid of people, they looked through the windows only to see empty rooms behind the glass, the thought that was immediately obvious to all was where everybody was? This looked like a fairly large town that could have held a few thousand people so where were they?

"Something is wrong here." Rush said as everyone became tense. Camille who folded her arms just said.

"No kidding."

"Could they had fled to the cities?" Clara asked thinking about the manors they had discovered when they first arrived on Gallifrey.

"No something is going on here." The Doctor said looking very concerned. He turned to General Young and told him. "We should be careful, I mean look at the place." Looking around Young could see clearly what the Doctor meant. Strange cars abandoned in the streets, toys that must have belonged to children just laying forlornly on ground. Doors left half open but no bodies or any sign of life.

"No animals either." Molly O'Sullivan noted, not even the most distant bird chirping which they had heard around the estates or around Lake Abydos. This whole situation was sending chills up her spine as it did to all the others.

"So where did everyone go, clearly they left in a hurry." Clara said picking up a small doll that she could well see in the arms of a little girl no bigger than her knee. She carefully put it down on the ground in respect. She hoped that maybe the little girl that the doll belonged might come back to collect it although her head was telling her that was extremely unlikely.

"If they left." Claire suggested as her eyes carefully studied their surroundings her particle magnum was in one hand. Rush came forward and told them.

"We should spilt in groups and start looking around. Maybe we can find transport or communications even if everyone has cleared off." The gruff scientist had always had his issues with Young for whatever reason even if they had patched most of those differences in time. His suggestion made sense to Young who nodded and he told the people.

"Alright we split into groups and scout around for supplies keep yourselves sharp I have a bad feeling about this, we meet back here in ten minutes just a quick look around before we go further." They all looked at the town ahead of them apprehensively before going off in groups of ten, the Doctor was ready to object when he saw something peaking over the top of one of the lower buildings and ran off to check it out leaving Clara behind. She sighed and joined the group being led by Captain Vanessa James.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Claire was leading her group in the same direction that the Doctor had ran off in and had her hand held PDA and scanner out. The readings she was getting back however were worrying her as she could not get a clear scan, like something was disrupting it somehow. She gave a frustrated groan and put it back on her belt as it was proving useless. She placed both hands on the grip of her particle magnum and looked around with her eyes when she noticed the street signs. The language of the timelords was one of the strangest she had ever seen, seeming to be a series of overlapping circles and lines in a complicated series that was not like any language on Earth. However as she stared at these strange symbols suddenly they started making a sort of sense to her she started seeing patterns in them that went well beyond what Daniel Jackson had taught her and could read what they were saying. Dunning noticed her staring almost in a trance at the signs he gripped her shoulder and shook it gently bringing her back to the moment before asking.

"You still with us?" The eyes of the people in her group all looked at her with worry in their eyes and Claire felt instantly uncomfortable before telling them.

"I was trying to figure out what those signs meant." She told them not wanting to reveal that she somehow understood the Timelord language until she had a chance to speak to the Doctor about it. Maybe she it was because she was telepathic and she could be accessing some kind of telepathic translation system without knowing it. None of the other crew as far she knew could read those signs so until she knew more she was not going to look a gift horse in the mouth or make the others think she was going crazy either. She looked at the signs again and saw that one of them indicated an administration building of some kind so she led her group down the path towards it only to see something rather disturbing when she and her people arrived.

The door to the building had been smashed open the door was laying in two pieces over some kind barricade made up of desks and other office furniture that had obviously been used just because it was all the occupants had available rather than what could actually hold whoever was trying to break in. The tension in the humans and their Ancient leader grew as they carefully climbed inside the building over the broken door and office furniture that had been smashed but what looked like a large object. However although there was a similar scene of devastation like a raging bull had torn its way through the place. Gashes had been torn deep into the walls and into the wall, furniture that had not been used in the barricade had been either smashed like those at the door or cleaved into two or more pieces. They all looked around to see the devastation around them and more annoyingly that every terminal had been smashed by whatever had attacked them. Claire was about to direct the group back to the meeting place with the others when Fisher a dark haired civilian scientist from _Destiny_ noticed something.

"Hey look at this." They all moved over to where she had crouched down in a corner and saw what had got her attention. There seemed to be a large patch of a dried slime on the corner next to what might be a cooling unit.

"Looks like a slug trail." Dunning remarked and Claire nodded really wishing her scanner was working properly so she could get a reading on it.

"Judging by the size of the mucus I'm guessing we are dealing with something a lot bigger than a garden slug." Claire said not wanting to risk smelling or touching it especially until they knew more about it. She stood up from her crouched position and told her people. "We'd better get back to the meeting point." They all nodded all looking nervous at their discovery.

"Well if they were attacked where are the bodies?" Dunning asked being a military man he thought this looked more like an animal attack than any other kind of assault he had seen before. It looked frenzied but there was one problem with that, animals did not take the time to clear up bodies. There should be remains all over the place if the ferocity of the damage was any indication but there was nothing.

"I don't know and I'd rather not find out." Claire told them and she started walking back towards the exit followed by her human friends. Climbing back over the broken furniture they emerged back into the street and started making their way towards the entrance where the rest of their people were waiting. As they moved down the street their eyes darted all over the place as if expecting a giant slug or a similar creature to leap out at them but thankfully none did. Then Claire saw the Doctor working a computer terminal furiously with an intense look of concentration on his face. She bit her lip and knowing the questions she had to ask him were best said without an audience so she turned to Dunning and told him. "Get back to meeting spot, I'll get the Doctor and join you later."

Dunning looked ready to argue but seeing the determined look in the eyes of a woman that could probably kick his butt he decided to follow her suggestions. So nodding he proceeded on with Fisher and the rest of the group while Claire walked up to the Doctor who was so engrossed in his work that he failed to notice her arrival.

"No don't be like that it's so unhelpful." The Doctor said as he pulled back with frustration in every word. He whipped around and said to Claire without even realising he had not heard her approach. "This stupid terminal tells me all the transmitters in the town have been destroyed."

"Really that's strange considering how little other damage there is to the buildings. Some of them looked they have been trashed by an animal though. But strangely no sign of any bodies." Claire told him not letting his strange behaviour throw her, most of the greatest geniuses had strange quirks and the Doctor seemed to be a particularly large case study of this but that only made him more endearing.

"That is odd." The Doctor said now having calmed down and pondered on the problem. Claire then asked him the question that had been on her mind since she had first read that sign.

"Doctor why can I suddenly understand the Timelord language?" She asked him nervously wondering how this might have happened. "I mean I look at the signs and it suddenly makes sense to me?"

The Doctor did a double take when she said it and pulled out his sonic screwdriver and did a scan around her head for a moment before pulling it back and looking at it. Claire wondered how he was getting the data out of the device without a visible interface when she picked up low level telepathic echoes coming from the man and his screwdriver. The idea that the Doctor was able to get information telepathically from the screwdriver would normally have sent her into a frenzy of scientific interest at how it worked but she was preoccupied at how she somehow understood a language she had never heard spoken or even seen written before today. There was nothing like it anywhere in any of the languages she had been trained in so where the hell had it come from?

"Well it isn't a link to the Tardis like Clara and the rest of my companions have." He said looking slightly confused himself, her admission having distracted him from the current mystery of what had happened here. He then scanned her again and his face suddenly lit up with understanding and he gave a proud "A-ha."

"Well?" Claire asked. She hated being kept in suspense and the fact that this could be a sign of something else happening worried her intensely, the last time something like this had happened she had discovered she was turning into an Ancient and although the outcome of that had been positive she could not be sure whatever this was might be so benign. But the Doctor's explanation turned her concern into confusion.

"It seemed when you connected to the Tardis back on _Destiny_ it placed some information into your head." He told her looked strangely amused by it. The knowledge that the Tardis was a living creature in some way did not surprise Claire as she had suspected that much when she had connected to its mind earlier. "Mostly subconscious which is why you were unaware of it until now." He said with a smile.

"Why would your ship do that?" Claire asked, relieved that it was nothing dangerous but mystified as to why the time and space machine that the Doctor called home would give her information when she hadn't even been looking for it.

"Knowing the Tardis as I do it probably did it because one day you are going to need it, maybe several times." The Doctor said wondering himself quietly as to what else Claire might have been given by his machine apart from his people's language. Clearly from the second scan some additional information had been implanted too but it was all in the young woman's subconscious mind and inaccessible to her consciously. Claire looked unsure of what he was saying, confused at how the machine might have known such things but unless another explanation presented itself this was the most likely one that she was going to get. The idea that she had unknown information locked away in her mind somewhere was disconcerting. What had the Tardis put in there? And more pressingly why had it done it?

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A while later she and the Doctor returned to where the rest of the group were waiting at the outskirts of the city. The group had moved slightly into the city setting up a base camp in a plaza they had found close by. Seeing General Young standing in the centre of it all next to a statue of a man in traditional time lord dress they both walked over to him and when he saw them he frowned at how long they had been but before they had a chance to speak they were disturbed by a strange groaning noise. Everyone looked around for the source but nothing could be seen yet. Everyone who had a weapon drew it as they looked around intently for the possible threat. Then Clara saw something moving on the other side of the plaza and pointed while shouting out.

"What is that?" Everyone turned to look and what they saw took them all by surprise even the Doctor. At the edge of the plaza was a creature about the same size as a fully grown mountain lion with oily black skin. It had no eyes but a mouth that was large enough to swallow a fully grown man whole with dagger like teeth that were dark yellow. It had four arms with hands that had clawed fingers. It seemed to be making a sound like a strange distorted heartbeat. The whole crew looked on at the strange creature, unsure what to make of it when they saw eight other similar creatures coming in from the same direction. The instincts of everyone present were screaming that this was not a good and everyone who had a weapon drew it. Then one of the creatures started making its way towards the group and the nearest man to it, a Russian soldier raised his submachine gun and started moving back as did all the others slowly till suddenly the strange creature stopped and braced visibly for a second and before anyone could shout a warning it propelled itself forward landing clean over the Russian soldier, everyone within range started firing at the creature as it consumed the Russian in one go, its mouth expanding as he screamed but their bullets seemed to bounce off its surprisingly strong skin and the energy weapons they had seemed to reflect off of it. Claire raised her particle magnum and was about to fire when one of the creatures spat a green covered slime at her. Her training kicked in and she dodged instinctively but some of the slime hit the gun in her hand. She looked quickly at it and saw the green slime burned through the metal housing and damaged the circuitry inside which sparked for a second before going dead.

The Doctor shouted out as finally he realised what the creatures were.

"RUN!"

Survival instincts drove them all to obey his command without question or hesitation so they all turned and started to run in the opposite direction when suddenly a cloaked figure appeared about twenty yards in front of them.

"This way." He shouted to them and as the creatures that had just consumed one of their group began to chase after them they did not hesitate for a moment in doing what he said. He started running himself just ahead of the group and he reached a kiosk of some kind that was standing in the middle of the street, quickly throwing open a door shouting to the group. "In here."

Thinking that the door must lead to a bunker or something similar underground the group did not hesitate to take his advice and all of them ran straight into the kiosk only to be surprised when instead of going down some stairs or a slide to an underground level they found themselves inside an impossibly large space. It must have been the size of a football field where the rest of the street and buildings should have been with strange pieces of equipment scattered all over the place. It was a large metal dome shaped room with a large hexagonal shaped console in the centre with an incredibly complex series of switches, dials and levers. As all eighty or so people spread out slightly into the strange room the cloaked man ran in and pushed a lever on the console in the centre of the room followed by a quick flicking of switches and turning of dials. They all heard a dull electronic hum before the cloaked figure turned around and walked over the Doctor who eyed him suspiciously while everyone else tried to figure out what the hell was going on. Claire and Clara of course recognised the room as a Tardis control room like the one on the Doctor's Tardis, clearly this one however belonged to a Timelord less interested in the look of his control room and more in machinery, the whole room had a feel of a mechanics workshop rather than a space and time travelling ship. The cloaked man had by now reached the Doctor and lowered his cloak's hood revealing a dark haired man that appeared to be in his late thirties but if he was a Timelord like the Doctor then he could well be millenniums older than that. He had solid looking biceps revealed as his hands reached up to the hood, not like a bodybuilding but those of a man that spent his time working with his hands. He had dark grey eyes and a big smile which made him seem years younger when he saw the Doctor though.

"Theta!" He said with obvious joy grabbing the Doctor's arms in a firm grip causing everyone who had no idea what 'Theta' to wonder what that had to do with the Doctor and were wondering if the man had mistaken the Doctor for someone else when the Doctor said in a dazed look of astonishment.

"Drax." Then the Doctor managed to shake himself out of his stupor and grab Drax's arms in the same way and told him with genuine warmth. "You have no idea how good it is to see you."

The Doctor then led him over to Clara who looked at the man with curiosity wondering just who he was when the Doctor addressed her unsaid questions without meaning too.

"Clara this is Drax, an old school friend of mine. We used to run together with a crowd of rebels when we were young determined to change the system." The Doctor said so happy to finally meet one of the old friends that he had feared lost forever that he was mentally immersed in the happier memories of their time in DECA where they had all been so young and sure of themselves, innocent in many ways.

"Well hello there." Drax said eying Clara up and down clearly liking her and took her hand to kiss it gently. Clara smiled as she saw the easy natured flirting and shook his hand firmly and told him.

"Pleasure. I hope you have some stories about the Doctor's wild school days?" Clara asked only teasing the Doctor in a good natured way remembering her own university days and what she and a bunch of her friends had gotten up too and Drax told her with a wide smile.

"You bet I do, I still remember that time we found out about that drink…what was it called…Red Nova Whiskey yes that was it." Drax said with a smile as he recalled the event. "None of us knew it had such a strong kick, I still don't know how I ended up naked on top of the statue of Omega." He said with a slightly sheepish look remembering the severe talking to that Borusa had given him but then he smiled again as he added. "But Theta here woke up in the same room naked with Ushas. Are you sure the two of you didn't?" Drax started asking with a sly grin but the Doctor looking almost red with embarrassment quickly told them both.

"No nothing happened." He said not wanting to remember the time he had got so drunk that he had woken up naked in the same bed as Ushas who would later become the renegade known as the Rani who was also naked. Despite what he had said to Drax and Clara along with whoever else was present who were all smirking at his embarrassment to this day he was still not sure if he had indeed slept with the Rani or not and she had run away not wanting to answer any questions because like him he suspected she wasn't sure if they had slept together either. Eager to change the subject the Doctor turned back to Drax and asked him trying to cling on to the threads of his dignity. "Can you take us to the Capital? I need to get these people home."

Drax lost his smile and with a heavy sigh he told the Doctor.

"Sorry mate no. My Tardis is a wreck, the bloody Daleks saw to that. I've got the defences to keep all the people safe in here but no engines, no communications nothing."

"All the people?" Clara asked wondering if he meant them or some other group. Drax gave her a look of sorrow before telling them all as he turned to walk to a door on the far side of the room.

"Follow me."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As Drax led them deeper into his Tardis the humans present who had no exposure to such technology were blown away by its greater size inside than out. Claire was interested in how this Tardis differed to the Doctor's and noted that Drax seemed to favour a more utilitarian look to the Doctor. There was no decoration just dull light grey metal sheets along the wall which had equally dull metal grating. Claire definitely preferred the warmth and style of the Doctor's machine as she tucked her borrowed Gallifreyan coat tighter around herself. It was not very warm in fact it was rather chilly. She however was more concerned with her Ancient Particle Magnum. She brought it up to her face so she could check the damage caused by the acid spit from earlier. There was clearly damage to the delicate internal circuitry and parts of the outer casing. It clearly needed repairs so hopefully Drax if the appearance of his Tardis was anything to go by would have some tools laying around that she could use to do some badly needed repairs to her favoured weapon. She was distracted from asking him though when Drax brought them to the a great hall that he had created within in his Tardis that must have been as big as New York's Broadway and crammed into this enormous space were what looked like hundreds of people all dressed in ruined timelord outfits shivering in the cold on makeshift beds or chairs. The sight reminded the more experienced members of the group of a refugee camp. They all looked to Drax who gave a sad smile as he told them what had happened.

"The Daleks created a genetically modified version of a Slyther. A nasty creature from their own homeworld, you saw them earlier." He told them referring to the creatures that had chased them into this Tardis. "They wanted to test their effectiveness against a small contained population so they released a dozen of them into the town and put up a force field to prevent anyone from leaving. They killed almost all of the town's population till I managed to break through the Dalek force field under heavy fire I don't mind telling you and got the survivors in here. But it pretty much killed my Tardis, I have to divert all power to the defences to keep the Slythers out and as I mentioned the engines and communications have been damaged beyond repair. I can't even warm the place up because of damage to the environment systems and had to delete most of the rooms to make space for this hall. We don't have any weapons that seem able to hurt the Slythers either so going out to scavenge supplies is too risky." Drax said frustrated. For all his incredible technical skills which actually rivalled the Doctor's he had been unable to fix the damage to his own ship or find the parts to put something together that might be able to kill the creatures.

All the humans, the two Ancients and the Two Timelords stood there looking at the scene in front of them. It was heart-breaking; a small group of children could be seen fighting over a small toy while the little girl who it belonged to cried in severe distress as her treasured doll was torn to pieces. Seeing the small girl tore into Claire's heart, she had long blonde hair that should had shone like gold but was greasy and knotted and her clothes where hanging off her tiny frame in a rather alarming way showing how much weight the girl must have lost since this all started. Without hesitating Claire walked over to the children and using her adult strength snatched the doll from the fighting children and snapped fiercely at them when they complained.

"Go back to your families and leave this child alone! Now!" She could read from their minds that these children did indeed have family members to take care of them while the crying girl who saw the tall redheaded woman taking back her dolly had no-one left, presumably due to the Slythers. No one seemed to be watching out for her and as Claire returned to the doll to its owner who looked up slowly into Claire's eyes and seeing the terrified child stare back with wide eyes full of fear, Claire smiled a big warm smile. The girl reached out to take the doll and with her tears still wet on her cheeks leapt towards Claire and wrapped her in a desperate hug as she cried. No one had been this kind to her since her parents died. She had no other family in the city and no one else to take care of her. Claire was a bit taken aback by the child's desperate need for comfort but quickly put her arms gently around her and stroked her hair as she whispered sweet things in her ear. The scene brought a lump to the throat.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

A short while later the crew took a moment to rest as they considered what they were going to do next. Food was scarce here so they would not be able to stay here for long, there was also the matter of getting home and for that end they would need a plan.

While the rest of her friends talked to decide what course of action Claire unfolded a blanket and tucked the little girl in after she had finally fallen asleep. It was almost heart-breaking as she saw another child going through the loss of her parents, her entire world being seemingly destroyed and being thrust into a cold and hard place where there was no-one who seemed to care. In the early days after losing her mother and her father being arrested Claire had gone through something similar although she had not been in a place like this she reflected; her entire world had been centred on her parents so when they were gone there had been nothing to cling too of her life before. Her mother's parents were dead even before her murder and she had no other family besides her paternal grandmother who she had never met before and who had no time to comfort the grieving Claire taking her on only as a burden she felt honour bound to take but also as Claire discovered later in the hopes of taking the large sum of money that Claire's mother had left to her plus the ancestral Scottish house that had been her family home. The isolation from other children and adults due to her father's reputation had only made the situation worse. It was not until her teachers in school noticed her higher than average intelligence and made more time to encourage her growth that she had started to at last get something positive in her life again. But all that had left her rather scared at it all being taken away again even as an adult. It was one of the reasons she had been so afraid of letting Samantha Carter down, in case Sam left her life. It was the same with other people Claire had grown close to over the years and as she looked down at the young child who looked only six earth years of age that she had comforted Claire hoped that she might have an easier time than that. Constantly looking for people she could really connect with and then being terrified of losing them.

But there was something else running through Claire's mind as well. She could see her own daughters growing up without her there wondering what had happened and if she had never loved them because she had gone away and not come back. The thought of that horrified Claire as while she knew that those she had left watching over her three daughters would make sure that her girls would be alright would they be able to make sure that they knew that she loved them with all her heart? It brought a sharp pain to her chest when she thought about it.

Gently stroking the girl's hair as she slept Claire turned to TJ who nodded, neither needed to speak TJ would keep an eye on the child while she slept. Claire took another look at the child who was now looking much more peaceful as she became lost in the world of dreams. It seemed to be a nice one too as she felt the calmer and happier feelings coming from the child so Claire let her sleep on smiling but overcome with feelings of compassion Claire gave the child a small kiss on the forehead and projected good thoughts with her telepathy. She with considerable regret left the child and walked over to Drax who was making sure they all had somewhere to rest while they worked on a plan. The Timelord turned to face her with a smile and asked.

"What can I do for you young lady?" He had a nice smile putting you at ease and Claire smiled back before asking.

"My weapon was damaged by those creatures. Have you got some tools and a workshop I could use to do some quick repairs?" She hoped he would say yes and she was not disappointed.

"Come with me." He said with a sly smirk as he led her through corridors before arriving in a dark room. Drax flicked a switch and Claire was left open mouthed by the sight before her. The room must have been the size of a football field with racks all along the walls covered with some many different tools that it seemed to go on forever. There were also books stacked into cabinets and a large central workstation. Seeing her open mouthed expression Drax told her. "Just be careful, I'll be back in an hour."

And with that he left her to get on with whatever she was going to do. She willed herself to walk forward and examine the tools that were lining the walls. There were so many of different shapes and sizes that she could not even guess at their function. She moved on to the books and glanced at the titles emblazed on their spines. In any other situation she would have loved nothing more than reading them all but now was not the time. But as she was about to get to work she saw a few titles leaping out at her but the most interesting title was _Energy Weapons of the Time War_. With a quickly smile she reached out and took the book before doing a casual look through its considerable number of pages and some of the information she saw brought a smile to her face as she closed the book and looked at her particle magnum. Taking the book to the workstation she carefully opened it to the page she needed and put her damaged weapon down as she went looking for the tools she needed.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Here's lunch." One of the Timelords from the town told the visiting humans as he brought a very uninviting looking creature over on a plate. The humans all looked like they were going to be sick at the horrible smell of the creature, it was truly revolting. It looked like a cross between a large rat and an armadillo. Becker the most experienced and best cook amongst them took one look at the creature and told them.

"There's not enough meat on that to feed a cat." He said with distain on his face the Timelord looked offended and his eyes narrowed.

"We have had to live off these creatures for weeks! If we can so can you!" The misery of the situation becoming apparent to all as they saw how these people who had once thought of themselves as the most advanced and possibly greatest race in all of creation had been reduced to the level of starving scavengers. Humbled was not strong enough a word for what these people had been through. Becker instantly felt bad and took the creature from him and gave him as big a smile as he could and told him.

"Thank you, I'm sorry we are just upset about being stuck in here that's all."

As the Timelord nodded and went back to join the rest of his people Clara who had been left with the other humans by the Doctor who had gone off to talk to Drax decided enough was enough.

"We need to deal with those Slythers! The people in here are starving." She said looking at the still sleeping child that Claire had comforted earlier as remembered how hungry the child had been when Claire had given her some of their own rations. The rest of the humans around her all looked to her and the leader of the Russian soldiers asked.

"Yes but how? Our weapons are useless against them."

"They can't be invincible." One of the male marines Greer said. Looking around Clara could see that the marines in both American and Russian groups were ready to have a go at the Slythers now. One of their own had been lost to those creatures and all the soldiers here were keen to inflict some payback but Clara was thinking ahead and told them.

"Maybe not but we need a plan. Any ideas?" She asked looking around and saw blank looks around her as they tried to come up with something. Then the leader of the Russians suddenly had an idea.

"We still have some grenades left." Alina told them all. Amongst the supplies from the _Korolev_ that had been brought with them was a consignment of throw able grenades. Most had been used to fend off the aliens that had attacked them in the Death Zone but they had a few left.

"And if we can thin them out a bit then maybe we can get some supplies enough to keep the people in here going until we can figure out something else." Matthew Scott said feeling hopeful. It was a plan and better than starving to death or trying to survive on those weird rodent things. So he, Greer, Vanessa, Clara, Eli, Alina, Stevens one of the marines and the Timelord that had brought them the rodent thing all got up and quietly took as many of the grenades as they dared before retracing their steps back to the control room of Drax's Tardis. They all got ready to go but Matt turned to the Timelord that had accompanied them and told him.

"Close the doors when we're gone. We'll knock five times in a row so you know it's us when we return."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As the humans and Vanessa left the Tardis they carefully checked the immediate area before daring to move further. So far it appeared quiet so they dared move deeper into the town's deserted streets. They were moving slowly as they dared to make the least amount of noise as possible. Suddenly they saw one of the Slythers motionless near a bombed out building. It was still making the strange sound that it had before so they knew it was alive. As they carefully moved closer they saw its wide jaws opening and closing slightly and Stevens said quietly.

"It's sleeping."

"Then don't wake it up!" Clara hissed at him. Alina removed one of the grenades from the backpack she was wearing and was carefully judging the distance to throw the grenade and land it in the creature's mouth when Vanessa put a hand on her shoulder and gently pried the small explosive device out of her hand and told her.

"Let me." Now with the grenade in hand she judged the distance and with her face serious with the utmost concentration pulled out the pin before throwing the grenade straight at the creature's wide jaws as the parted briefly as it slept on using her own telekinesis to make sure that it hit its target. She smiled as the grenade flew straight and true vanishing into the creature's wide mouth. The creature felt the strange lump enter its mouth but had no time to wonder as to what it was before the explosive detonated. Briefly to those who were watching it looked like someone had tried to blow up the Slyther like a balloon before its black slimy skin could take no more and it burst with the sheer force of the explosion.

"Yes." Matt said in triumph as they claimed their first kill.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Back in Drax's Tardis the Doctor was involved in a very deep discussion with Drax who stood there his earlier jovial attitude completely absent as he listened to what the Doctor had to say. When the Doctor finally finished Drax said impassively.

"It could work but you will need help." The Doctor nodded solemnly before telling his old friend who was one of the few members of DECA that had not turned evil and tried to kill him. The plan might save the universe and Gallifrey from itself but like Drax said he would need help to carry it out.

"I will find it." The Doctor said with complete certainty. Already he was thinking about where he might go to get the kind of help he needed to put the rest of his plan into motion and already he knew the people he would need to find to enlist their aid. Then the two men were broken from their conversation when Claire Williams walked into the room with a smile on her face. She turned to Drax and told him not realising the intense conversation she had just disrupted.

"Here you are, sorry I just thought I'd say thank you for letting me use your workshop." Claire said with a smile aimed at Drax before adding. "I put all the tools I used back where they belong. It's just as you left it."

Drax feeling slight relief at the change of the subject smiled at the young Alteran girl and was about to say something else when Molly O'Sullivan came in dragging the Timelord that had been in the control room. She looked very concerned and the three other people in the room all turned to face her.

"Molly what is it?" The Doctor asked the great-granddaughter of one of his old companions wondering what had happened to get her looking so worried.

"It seems that a few of our people got hold of some grenades and decided to go and take out the Slythers." Molly said and everyone in the room that had no known all tensed before Molly told them who had gone. "Matt, Greer, Vanessa, Stevens, Eli, Alina and Clara."

The mention that some of the _Destiny_ crew had been foolish enough to try and take on the Slythers worried them all immensely which only got worse when Drax told them something that he had neglected to tell them before.

"They can't! These Slythers hunt by sound. If they start letting off grenades all over the place they'll draw them from all over the town. Come on we have to hurry, I have just the thing." Hearing his words was enough to really worry the Doctor and Claire who without saying a word dashed out of the room towards the main control room followed by Drax and Molly.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"And the fifth Slyther is down." Greer said with satisfaction as another one was blown apart by the grenades. Matt and Stevens smiled at their latest success as did Vanessa, Eli, Clara and Alina. Some Slythers had been caught sleeping, others had been moving and while they created a distraction to draw its attention before throwing the grenade guided by Vanessa's telekinesis.

"One More and we should probably head back, before the General notices that we're not there." Vanessa said wondering if going out and hunting the Slythers down without the General's permission was such a good idea. Of course she knew he would never have approved in the first place and they were all going to get a legendary dressing down from the man when they got back to whatever it was they had all been sheltering in but their results should at least prove that they could attack these creatures with a decent chance of success.

Stevens was carrying the pack with the grenades when suddenly the sound of a Slyther appeared causing all them to look around. Clara was the first to spot it.

"Over there." She pointed to a side alley between two buildings as a large Slyther slithered its way into the open. But then Eli said.

"No there." He said as another Slyther appeared from an alcove.

"They are everywhere." Matt said as he saw three more coming out of one of the buildings. Looking around quickly Vanessa could see at least seven Slythers had surrounded them, she could not understand how they had all found them at the same time. The Slythers had been described to her by the refugees as mindless beasts but then her heart sank as she noticed something. The Slyther no eyes or apparent noses so they did not hunt by sight or smell so the most likely source of their hunting ability had to sound.

"They hunt by sound like how bats see." Vanessa told them with concern as they saw their routes of escape being cut off by the nasty creatures. Stevens saw a cluster of three Slythers and looked quickly into his pack seeing worryingly that they only three grenades left. So without waiting for permission he pulled the pin out of one of the grenades and threw it at the damaged building wall that the three Slythers. The grenades exploded moments later shattering the already damaged wall causing debris to fall straight onto the Slythers, crushing them and leaving parts of dead Slyther poking out of the pile of rubble. But Stevens had been so focused on the three Slythers that he failed to notice a fourth moving closer behind him until it was too late. The creature pounced and landed on top of him, he barely had to call out to his horrified colleagues who had failed to notice the approaching creature themselves before he was covered from head to foot. Greer was about to run over as was Clara but they were grabbed by Matt and Vanessa who told them that there was nothing they could do and pushed both of them towards the quickly closing opening that Stevens had created before Matt pulled the still frozen Eli with them. As they clambered as quickly as possible over the pile of rubble Clara cried out in pain as she felt something sharp cut her foot. She had only a moment to look down and see that she had stepped on the forked tongue of the Slyther which she saw to her surprise was actually some kind of stinger. But she had no time to check her foot as she moved forward to get away from the closing Slythers. As they cleared the pile of rubble and joined the others who were making good progress away from the Slythers Clara winced as a stabbing pain started in the heel of her foot and quickly started making its way up her leg. She fell over as suddenly her whole left leg went numb. Vanessa saw her fall and with no thought for herself ran back and picked Clara up securely and started carrying her as fast as she could. Ahead of them Matt stopped with Greer and Eli as they saw to their horror the way was blocked by a collapsed building with no way around.

However just as the surviving Slythers got ready to pounce and the crew prepared to meet their maker they heard over the noise of the Slythers a loud to but steady hum. Looking for the source the trapped people saw a large flying vehicle move over the top of the wrecked building. At the wheel they saw the Doctor, Drax, Molly and Claire who swooped down next to them. Claire stood up in the back of the vehicle and pulled out a pistol that looked like her Particle Magnum but it had gone through some changes. The finish of the weapon was now a dark gold with lines of glowing red moving from the handle to the barrel's end. Claire took aim at one of the Slythers which had briefly halted their approach with the noise of the flying vehicle but had now started moving towards them again and fired. Rather than the blue bolt of energy that had previously been used by the weapon a red blast emerged striking the Slyther straight in the centre. The creature shrieked as a large hole was blasted through it before it felt silent dead. Not wasting a moment Claire changed targets to another Slyther and fired again as the trapped members of her group clambered aboard. The Doctor looked worried at the pain on Clara's face as her leg suddenly stopped being numb and agonizing pain started. He abandoned the passenger seat to help Molly as she checked Clara's foot wound. Taking off the boot Molly blanched at the sight of the violent purple shade Clara's foot had turned into. Drax looking over his shoulder and saw the scene yelling to them.

"Slyther venom." Molly turned to Claire who was now finishing off the last Slythers and shouted.

"Claire get over here." Claire turned around when her name was called and saw Molly taking out a syringe from the emergency medical kit she had with her. Without waiting for Claire's consent she stabbed it into her arm causing Claire to cry out in surprised pain but Molly took no notice as she extracted blood from Claire. Claire asked angrily.

"What are doing?" Molly answered her looking concerned as she pulled the now full needle out and moved over to the injured Clara.

"I heard from the refugees that the Slyther will kill a person in twenty minutes if we don't get something into her blood that can purge the toxin. The Ancient Virus is still in your blood and from all the tests I've done on the virus I know that it should kill the toxin and save her life."

Without waiting any longer Molly without asking Clara's permission injected Claire's blood straight into Clara's injured leg causing the young woman to past out.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Clara woke over a day later, she found herself lying on a soft bed with the Doctor at her side. He stared at her intensely but in his big eyes Clara could see the worry and relief that he was hiding.

"Doctor." Clara said with a smile as she started to try and sit up only for her to be pushed back into bed by her best friend who had not left her side while the Ancient virus had purged the Slyther venom inside her body. Clara although feeling far better than she had before

"Clara the virus in Claire's blood has purged the venom but it's going to try and turn you into an Ancient like her." The Doctor said feeling that she deserved to know what was happening to her but quickly added at the surprised look on her face. "But I'm going to make sure that does not happen."

Clara smiled at his certainty, his confidence might be confused for arrogance but that could not be further from the truth. He was brilliant, incredible even but flawed. He cared more than nearly any other man she had ever met. He cared so much that when he could do nothing to help it tore him up inside. When he asked her if he was a good man she had not known this incarnation long enough to say but now she did.

"You asked me once if you were a good man." Clara said with a smile causing the Doctor to look at her confused and almost hesitant to hear her answer. "The answer I should have given you is yes. You are one of the best men I have ever met."

The Doctor heard her words and was almost afraid of what she might say, worried that she would say that he was a bad man. To hear her say that brought the smile back to his face as he absorbed the words. This woman who had seen him in his darkest hour, honestly considering killing his entire species destroying his home planet on which they now stood. Committing genocide to save the universe and Clara had talked him out of it. The Moment had brought the different incarnations together to find another way but it was not until Clara reminded him of the promise he had made when he had chosen the name 'Doctor' as his own that he had realised what that promise really meant and that there had been another way. The fact the planet they were standing on existed was down to her, his War, tenth and eleventh selves had all been ready to carry out the plan till that point. Thanks to her 2.47 billion children still lived and no longer did they weight on his conscience.

In the other room of Drax's Tardis Matt, Vanessa, Greer, Eli and Alina were all getting chewed out by Young whose cold fury made all them want to sink into a pit in the ground rather than look him in the eye but Young would not allow it.

"The sheer level of stupidity beggars belief." Young told them sternly as he stared at them so intently they all felt like tiny bugs under a microscope. "Stevens's dead, Clara Oswald nearly killed. What the hell were you thinking?" Young asked them. Matt stood forward willing to the blame for this monumental blunder. It might have helped cleared several Slythers but as the General had told them while bawling them out largely and with intense ferocity it had caused one death, nearly cost another person their life and lost them some vital equipment. Young frowned as Matt began talking.

"We wanted to help these people sir, we can't hide in here forever." Young looked at them intently. He knew how bad things were in here but he would rather have all his people here and safe than sacrificing their lives in some vain attempt to ease the situation. A point that he was about to make clear to these people in a way they would never forget.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Drax and Claire however were using her new upgraded weapon to hunt down and destroy the last of the Slythers.

"And bull's eye." Drax called joyously from the controls of his hover car as Claire picked off another Slyther. Claire laughed too liking her new weapon immensely. Although she had yet to tell anyone and she was not planning to either she had used a small part of Timelord science to upgrade her Particle Magnum. The Doctor might suspect and Drax too maybe but they were not going to complain too loudly about it. Especially since it was now the only weapon they had that could affect the Slythers. Drax told her looking very happy as his scanner. "And that was the last of them, we've got our town back."

"That is good." Claire said happy to be able to get the people out of their hiding place and back into the daylight. A short while later Claire witnessed the people finally emerging from the wrecked Tardis bringing a smile to her face as the children started to run about in joy at finally having enough space to run about and play properly.

"Well now at least I can do what I do best, building things and fixing machines." Drax told her rubbing his hands together at the thought of rebuilding this town, maybe even making some improvements of his own design. Claire was about to go and re-join her friends when Drax then remembered something.

"No wait, you've got to try this." He said grabbing her hand and pulling her into a building which appeared to be some kind of booth with a glass screen around the area where the head would be if someone stood inside it. "Watch." He said with a grin as he stood in the booth and closed his eyes. Claire wondered what he was doing for a moment till she saw the glass like up green before a glow moved up Drax's body from feet to the head. Then it moved back down and then intensified at Drax's feet. After a moment it faded leaving a pile of fresh overalls and workman boots at Drax's feet.

"Nice." Claire said it was not amazing because they could do the same thing with the beam replicator but to have a special booth which could scan you and determine both the type of clothes you wanted and adjust them to the right size was impressive. Drax smiled as he picked up the pile of clothes at his feet and told her.

"Telepathic circuits allow you to just think of the type of clothing you want, the scanner determines the measurements and then it creates it for you. Why don't you try it out?" Drax suggested knowing how many of the _Destiny_ crew had had to 'borrow' clothes from the abandoned mansions of Southern Gallifrey. The Doctor had told him earlier when he had realised that they were humans rather than Timelords. Thinking they might want to make something more suitable to their travels across Gallifrey and were more comfortable with he thought that he should show them the clothing generator so he told her. "It's a public convenience so everyone is free to use it. Go ahead have fun." He told her before wandering off to get his tools and equipment together to start the rebuilding work.

After he left Claire looked at the booth silently for a moment as she thought about what he's said. She didn't like these Timelord clothes really, it had been a case of needs must when her own clothes had been ruined. They were itchy, they were not really warm enough add to that they had had technically stolen them made wearing them very uncomfortable. So making her decision Claire stepped into the booth and closed her eyes.

She instantly became aware of the telepathic circuits as they connected with her mind. She found herself staring at a duplicate of herself in some wide open void. Claire found that she could move but her doppelganger stood complexly still like a statue. Wondering how this worked Claire concentrated on a leather jacket to replace the one she had lost. It had been a birthday present that jacket and she was rather fond of it. To her astonishment a jacket identical to the one she was thinking of appeared on her duplicate. Now understanding how this worked Claire concentrated on the clothes she wanted.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"There are no travel capsules here and the communications are wrecked." Drax was telling the Doctor regretfully. "If you want to get something like that you will need to head to the nearest city." He told the Doctor with a concerned look that his old friend shared as the Doctor identified the nearest city.

"Arcadia." Drax nodded and the Doctor just stared into space as he thought about the last time he had stood in the second city of Gallifrey on the day of its fall to the Daleks. Two words from his Time War incarnation or simply the 'War Doctor' echoed in his mind as he saw the chaos and devastation; no more. Drax was right of course if they wanted to reach the Capital then they would need a travel capsule or world-wide communications both of which although damaged could certainly be found in Arcadia. But that would mean returning to that wrecked war zone and who knows what might be found there and more importantly what he might be subjecting the humans too. Knowing that this was the only choice without letting the High Council know he was here he told Drax. "I have to go."

"I thought you might say that." Drax said with a weary smile as he led the Doctor over to an old and battered looking large bus like vehicle. "This will get you there…just." He added with a little caution. The Doctor looked ready to comment when he saw Claire and Clara walking towards him.

"So what's next Doctor?" Claire asked which was when the Doctor took notice of her new outfit. She had ditched the Timelord clothes and created a dark red t-shirt that looked like it was made of a strong warm cotton, she had put over the t-shirt a black leather like jacket which was fitted to her slim figure. When it was open you could see the dark red and golden lining on the inside, her long legs were clad in some kind of tight black leather pants with a belt loosely around her hips carrying a holster for her weapon and another for her scanner. Finally on her feet were a set of black leather boots with a slight but practical heel but like the rest of her outfit were tough and flexible enough to move in. It also kept her warm and was more comfortable than the Timelord clothing. Clara had also used the Clothing generator. She had also made herself a black leather like jacket but had teamed it with a red blouse and skirt then black tights and practical black boots.

Already the rest of the people from _Destiny_ that had lose their original clothing including Clara were queuing up to take their own turns in the machine. Many of them were just remaking what they had lost but others were being more inventive. The Doctor frowned at as he ignored them and told the two young women what they were doing next.

"Drax has provided us with a hover bus. It will get us to the nearest city, there we can pick up either transport to the Capital or a communications line to the people there. The only problem is that the only city we can reach is Arcadia." The Doctor said with a grim look. Claire did not understand the problem however Clara did as she remembered the Gallifreyan painting of the city falling to the Daleks on the last day of the Time War. During the brief moments she and the other Doctors had spent in the stasis cube as the War Doctor had called it she had seen the horror that had unfolded there, frozen in a single moment of time. She frowned as she replied.

"So we are heading into a war zone?" She asked and seeing Claire's surprised look the Doctor nodded.

"What will we encounter there?" Claire asked. She thought about the damage to the town that they were in and could only imagine what might be waiting for them in Arcadia.

"All the dangers of a battlefield." The Doctor told her grimly and then added more ominously. "And then who knows."

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	6. Chapter 6

_I do not own Doctor Who or Stargate Universe_

 **Chapter 6 – Arcadia**

A few hours after leaving the town of Hope, the Doctor sat at the controls of the large hover bus that Drax had provided them. The mixed group of people that accompanied him all looked out of the windows to see the alien landscape past beneath them while others took a moment to get some much needed sleep. Others like the more serious soldiers on board the transport were checking their equipment in preparation for their arrival at the second city of Gallifrey, Arcadia.

The Doctor sat in silence while Clara and Claire sat close by looking at him with concern at his darkening mood. From the way the Doctor had described Arcadia it might as well be hell. A glorious old city reduced to a chaotic battlefield full of blood and slaughter for the Timelord people who lived there. Their bodies piling up in the streets or crushed in the collapsed buildings. Architecture that was older than nearly any other in the whole universe reduced to a broken pile of rubble spread over the dust covered floor. People who had once been painters, poets, scientists, sculptors, authors and designers all thrown into the devastation only a knife's edge away from final death. All their lives they had never known what it was to be truly hungry and then they found themselves starving, never had their lives in danger only to discover how hostile the universe really was. It was imprinted on the Doctor's mind; the screaming, the dying the suffering that seemed to go on without end. Clara had little idea of what had happened there beyond what she had seen in the painting Gallifrey falls no more or what little that the Doctor had been willing to tell her. Claire knew even less than that. One thing that they were sure of however was that whatever was waiting for them there it was sure to be bad.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Some more hours past as the old and rusty hover bus flew through the skies which were still dark as night had fallen but they would reach the city by dawn. The Doctor knew that they would soon be in sight of the city and not a moment too soon as he saw the fuel gauge get rather to close to empty than he was comfortable with. Not to mention he had heard some particularly alarming sounds and vibrations coming from the engines. When this hover bus landed next whether it was controlled or worse a crash it would never fly again. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the few tall spires of the city that were still standing appear on the horizon ahead of the slowly rising suns which outlined them. It was strangely magical to those who were awake to see the rising suns over the ruined city.

Turning away from the sight in front of him the Doctor looked at his display panel and he breathed a sigh of relief when he confirmed they could make it there before they faced any immediate problems or rather he hoped they could as the engine temperature gauge shot up to the critical marker before going back to normal so he turned his thoughts back to whatever might be facing them inside that city. Getting closer to the city he began to see the scars that the Daleks had left on the once great metropolis. Claire and Clara got up out of their seats to look over his shoulders out of the cockpit and both women gasped in shock when they saw it.

The first thing they could see was the enormous spires of the city, once they would have been glorious but now they were blackened and burnt out and that was just the ones that were still standing. Stumps or huge piles of rubble marked the spots were other spires must have once stood and in-between there were other smaller buildings that looked either as burnt out as the spires or themselves were piles of rubble too. Smoke rose high into the sky from either the more recently broken buildings or the fires that were still burning scattered across the city. It was too high to see any people yet but the ruin of a city looked like it had been abandoned. The Doctor feeling a great sense of foreboding looked for an area large enough and flat enough for them to land. It was difficult given the current chaotic arrangement of the city beneath them. Claire and Clara both joined him in scanning the city beneath them for a landing spot. Clara was the first to spot one.

"Down there." She said pointing towards a small strip of land that was just long enough and flat enough to land the bus. The Doctor turned to them and said.

"Get everyone in their seats and secured. Then yourselves." The two women nodded and went back to the passenger area and told the eighty or so people.

"Right we are landing so return to your seats and buckle up." Claire told them feeling like an air hostess. She and Clara went between the seats and checked everyone was buckled in properly before secured themselves in their own seats and Clara yelled to the Doctor in the cockpit.

"We are ready." The Doctor did not acknowledge as he was rather worried at how the gauges in front of him seemed to be breaking one by one. The engine temperature gauge was the first to go followed shortly by the fuel management display, then the speed and finally the altimeter just a second ago. Knowing it was only a matter of time before something more vital failed the Doctor wasted no time in quickly moving the hover bus down to the landing spot. As he hovered only twenty feet from the ground the wake from the engines that held the bus aloft vibrated the weakened walls of the small building that was closest. They held for a moment before giving way and crumbling to the ground disturbing the landing site with clouds of dust and small debris fortunately however the Doctor was still able to put the rapidly failing bus down on the ground before its systems failed. Looking around through the thin cloud of dust as it slowly fell around the bus the group could see the ruins on either side of them. The Doctor opened the door as soon as the dust had cleared and shut the bus down. He didn't wait for anyone to ask him any questions before taking his coat and exiting the bus. Feeling very nervous the rest of the group slipped on their own coats and followed him emerging into the devastated landscape around them. General Young felt particularly worried as he thought about how much it resembled the war zones that he had seen in the past and he could only imagine what dangers might be waiting here on this alien world. So with that in mind he called out to his people.

"Alright everybody listen up." He saw all of them turn to face him so he continued. "We have no idea what might be here, this was a battlefield so touch nothing. Whatever you do stay together and be careful." The group nodded after the surprises in the Death Zone and the town they had been in just hours before they were certainly weary of entering another settlement on Gallifrey and more so as it was a city rather than a small town like last time.

The Doctor meanwhile had not been listening to anyone since he got out of the bus, he was just staring at the wrecked street and buildings around him. Clara seeing the intense dark stare walked up and put her hand gently on his shoulder and shook him slightly. He seemed to come out of his trance and shook himself for a moment as he brought himself back into the present.

"This used to be a bustling street." He said with a slight edge of grief in his voice. "Artists used to come here to work and display their creations to whoever would look." He said looking to his feet he saw a flash of silver. Leaning down he picked it out of the pile of dirt that had almost completely covered it. It had been sculpture of some kind, broken in half there was no way to tell what it might have once been. The Doctor and Clara stared trying to make out what it could have been before the Doctor gave up and placed it carefully on a flat piece of stone. He looked around but could not see the other half which he concluded must have been smashed to bits or otherwise was buried in the rubble that was only inches away from them. Clara tried to cheer him up by saying.

"Maybe one day it will be again, artists could show their creations and people will come and see them." However the Doctor's mood did not improve as he told her bleakly.

"It won't be the same."

"Maybe that is for the best." Clara told him as he looked over to her she explained her point. "You can never wipe away all that has happened. Gallifrey will be different after the Time War but does it have to a worst planet? Maybe it could be a better place?" She suggested. The Doctor was about to retort when he remembered the way the Timelords had once been, before the Time War. Technologically advanced beyond every other race that they knew of. Living in peace but it was the sort of peace that came with isolation as they shut the rest of the universe out. Arrogant in the power that came with their mastery over time and any development of either technological or sociological nature stagnated over the millions of years of having no threat that could really match them. Looking down at the universe with upturned noses as if they were beneath them. The fate of entire planets and billions of lives nothing more than a something to be used and discarded or worse a plaything. Maybe Clara was right the Doctor concluded. His people had lost their way so badly that it was almost impossible to imagine that maybe they could be on the right path again. Maybe being humble like this might remind them of their true role in the universe; to preserve the web of time and more importantly protect life.

Well he thought as he felt Clara give him a hug to try and cheer him up, he could only hope.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Led by the Doctor yet again the group began their trek through the ruined city. In the sometimes very narrow passages or roads they had to squeeze through single file. It was slow progress, sometimes they would find a route forward only to discover later that it was completely blocked and would have to go back and find another route. All around there was nothing but ruined and burnt out buildings alongside piles of rubble. It was a scene of utter devastation but there was no sign of life at all. Nobody huddling in the wreckage, no bodies nothing but ruined buildings. In the distance they could see over the piles of rubble they could see the large spires in the centre of the city.

It was eerily silent as they moved through the city streets, no sounds except their own footsteps echoing all around them. The people looked at the sights around them trying to imagine what it must have been like before this horror had taken the vast metropolis of presumably millions of people and changed it from a place full of life and activity into a bombed out wreck that was completely abandoned.

"There has to be someone around here." Eli said. He was becoming very uncomfortable with the silence around them. Ginn who was at his side looked uneasy, she was disturbed at silence around them too wondering if it was like this is her home town now. After the massacre committed by her former friend. Where the simple mix of stone and wooden buildings lying as a burnt out ruin completely silent where they had previously been the sound of people going about their business, even children playing? The SGC had confirmed the destruction of her home village but she had not wanted to go back there wanting to remember it as it had been rather than what it was now.

As they moved past a particularly large pile of rubble in-between two houses Vanessa whose well-honed survival instincts were tense with anxious feelings over the place around her stopped. She heard something, a faint but definite voice but she did not hear the voice with her ears but rather her mind, like a sound carried on the wind. She looked around and felt the source of the voice coming from the pile of debris not far away. Turning to Claire she saw in her eye that Claire must have heard the call for help too and without saying a word both of them ran towards the pile of rubble. She could hear Camille and General Young calling after them but neither woman acknowledged their order to stop. Seeing how large some of the stone or metal pieces of debris were both women reached out with their telekinesis and pieces of rubble started rising into the air before flying off to the sides. The two women frowned with frustration as they kept going lifting as many pieces of debris as they could sometimes three or four at a time each until suddenly a hand shot up from between two pieces of wreckage. Lifting the two pieces away quickly Claire and Vanessa rushed over climbing over the bits they had not moved to see an old man looking up at them from a small alcove in the rubble that must have protected him when the building collapsed but they could see the dried blood that had pooled near him and saw his injuries through the torn and battered timelord robes. They were about to call out for Molly and TJ when the man who had yet to say a word grabbed their arms and spluttered out.

"No I welcome this." He said his eyes focused but fraught with pain from his injuries. Vanessa took her water flask off her belt and held it too his lips. He sipped eagerly at the cool liquid as it poured down his throat. Bringing him some slight measure of relief he sighed in pleasure as the water eased his sore throat. Looking up at his two rescuers he asked them. "Who are you?"

"I'm Vanessa this is Claire." Vanessa said before urgently adding. "We can heal you a bit here and we have a doctor she could help too." But he shook his head at that before explaining to them.

"It's too late for that. After all I have seen and done in this war I welcome an end to it, I have no regenerations left and even if I did I would fight against it." He said with a relieved glint in his tired eyes. Vanessa and Claire both felt his grief and distress at all the things he had seen and done in the war. The loss of so many that he cared about he welcomed death with open arms. He looked up at them with eyes that were bright with relief but slowly dimming as his injuries took their toll and decided to tell them more delighted that these two beautiful women were with him at the end rather than spending his final moments alone in a collapsed building.

"I was a poet you know before the war." He told them as the two women both with some reluctantly agreed to his request not to try and save his life and grasped his hands gently. "The only thing I would do is try to write verses on the universe and how good would always triumph over evil. But I had no concept of what evil truly was." He said looking downcast for a moment before becoming suddenly very serious and grasping their hands tightly.

"You have to get to the Eastern District the soldiers that are left were setting a safe zone up there. I was looking for people when this building collapsed, it's your only chance." He said desperately trying to give something to these two women had that given his final moments some purpose and comfort. "There are still Daleks in the city, left over from when Gallifrey disappeared from the Time War. I don't know how many but there are still some here. Watch out for them." He said with the last embers of his strength failing taking his final breath he smiled again as he looked up at the two young women who were trying their best to comfort him and said with a happy almost joyful tone.

"All those worlds out there that believe in angels even though they never see them, I used to think they were naïve. Who would have thought that two would come to comfort me when I most needed it?" He said with a childlike smile that caused Claire and Vanessa to look at him in surprise and slight embarrassment at his believing they were angels although he was speaking poetically. However they did not have long to be embarrassed as his eyes closed as his hearts beat slowed and finally stopped. His grip on their hands slackened and fell as Claire and Vanessa released their own grip. The two best friends looked into each other's eyes as they slowly got to their feet and with one last look at the man that they had found slowly climbed down the pile and returned to the group both feeling very unsettled. Death was nothing new to either woman, they had both had felt it in their lives strongly especially when they suffered the loss of someone dear to them but something about the way that the old Timelord they had just met had been so haunted by the war that he had been almost eager to embrace the end disturbed both of them on a very deep level. Seeing the look on their faces the Doctor moved forward to intercept them before the other members of the group might give them a hard time for going off like that.

"He was a poet." Claire told the Doctor without looking up as they both stared down at the ground beneath them. Vanessa then said without emotion as best as she could.

"But he didn't tell us his name."

"But you were there for him." The Doctor said kindly. That was one of the greatest kindnesses that you could give to a person.

"He told us that the surviving soldiers were setting up a safe zone in the city's eastern district." Claire told him which made the Doctor look suddenly more hopeful.

"Good the Transport Capsule station is around that way. If we can get there then we should be able to get a capsule which could get us to the Capital." The Doctor said feeling better about the situation but then Vanessa delivered news that smashed that elation like a brick through a glass window.

"He also warned us that there are still Daleks in the city, not a lot but some."

That made nearly everyone tense. Even though the people that tensed the most where the Doctor and Clara who had both had multiple encounters with the horrid machines in the past, all of the group with the exception of the Russians felt instantly on edge. The creatures that had destroyed _Destiny_ and killed over half of their shipmates some members of the original ship's crew amongst them where here in this city somewhere.

"Did he say where?" Young asked wondering how he was going to protect his people from the creatures that had destroyed their ship. He had received a partial briefing on the Daleks from the limited information that the SGC had about them, mostly gathered from the Canary Wharf incident and when the Earth had been moved which amounted to very little. Armoured on all sides with no regard for any life other than Dalek life, all other species were vermin to be either used and then discarded or just exterminated on the spot.

"No. Just that they were here." Claire told him she then told him. "We should still head east, if we have any chance of being safe it's probably in the Eastern District."

"Then east we go." Young agreed. If the soldiers defending this city had managed to set up a safe zone there then it was the best place to be right now and again that was apparently where they could get transport out of here. On the other hand he was not sure if they had any reasonable chance of defeating a Dalek if they encountered one. He remembered during the time when the Earth was moved that he and his stargate teams had been out having a beer after a rather tiring mission at O'Malley's. The Daleks had swarmed down into their area looking for something. It had been all he could do to get some people and his team out of the bar before the Daleks had burned the place to the ground. Some people he had seen being taken prisoner never to be seen again. He could only imagine what must had happened to those poor people.

So he turned to the Doctor who from the dark look in his eyes must have encountered the Daleks many times. "If we run into the Daleks what can we do? We haven't got any weapons capable of getting through that armour of theirs."

"I'm not sure." The Doctor said after a moment of silence as he thought about it. He hated the use of weapons but he did acknowledge that they would probably need some to take on the Daleks. He certainly did not want to lose any one else to those creatures. His eyes flashed over to Clara and Molly, the former being his companion and whose' echo Oswin he had lost to the Daleks in their asylum and Molly because of how he had lost her great-grandmother in the battle between himself, the Dalek Time Controller and the Eminence the horrible gaseous race from the end of time that he had fought so hard against in his fourth and eighth incarnations. Going back however to the matter at hand rather than losing himself in those memories he thought hard and told Young with some regret.

"If we can avoid them we should. Thanks to the environment around us there is plenty of cover so hopefully we can avoid them. But if we face one head on I don't think we would have a chance."

"What about Claire's new blaster, could that take a Dalek down?" Ginn asked and Eli nodded furiously hoping for something more uplifting. The indicated woman looked up in surprise as she took her newly modified weapon out of its holster and handed it to the Doctor who quickly handed it back and told them.

"It should be able to penetrate the Dalek force field that surrounds it but not the casing." The Doctor said making Claire, Ginn and Eli all look a bit dejected but then he added. "If she could hit the eye stalk on the top of the dome then she could blind a Dalek but other than that I do not know."

"Then we will just have a void them at all costs." Claire said firmly returning her weapon to its place in its holster. "So Doctor which way?" She asked him and he pointed down a narrow passage at the end of the street.

"Onward" He cried out with a smile as the group started their journey to the eastern district and hopefully safety and a further step in the way home.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

They moved on for an hour without finding anyone or seeing any sign of people. But as they cleared another burnt out building they all stopped as they found a terrible scene before them.

It had been a small city park at some stage where families might have taken their children to play on free afternoons or weekends, the red grass was evidence enough of that as was the now mostly barren flower beds. But what really disturbed them all was what now filled the park.

Bodies, lots of them all just left to rot on the ground beneath them.

They all slowly moved forward as they entered the area that they had to past through to get to the Eastern district but all their eyes found wherever they looked was more bodies. It was as though someone had just piled all the people into the park and they all fell down. Some looked like they had tried to run only to be cut down by some invisible force then they saw a small burn where an energy weapon had hit their backs. Something all the corpses had.

Seeing the scene around them Young shouted to his people.

"Just fix your eyes on the other side of the park, don't look at the bodies." He was no less affected by the death that was all around them but he wanted to keep his people going rather than let them dwell on it. It would only sink morale even lower and distract them. He grimaced as he saw the body of a boy that looked no older than fourteen right in front of him. He had no idea what timelord teenagers were like but if he had been human then he should have been discovering girls, fighting with his parents for his independence, hanging around with his friends and generally rebelling. Yet here he was cut down when his life held such promise. It cut deep but he pushed it aside with great effort to keep going.

The crew felt tears forming in their eyes as they tried not to think about all the death around them but they still despite their best efforts could see more bodies scattered around them. Not even the Doctor could stop tears growing in his eyes as he saw all the death around him. In his over two thousand years of life he had unfortunately seen places such as this before too many times especially when the Daleks were involved. Clara besides him was openly letting her tears run down her face. When they finally passed through the park and where out of sight of the vast scene of death behind them they all stopped and took a moment to deal with what they had just seen, some even threw up the horror was so great. Most of them could hardly comprehend it all, why able intelligent creature could do something like that. The others who were more experienced in the ways of world could see the reason for it as clear as day. Hatred for people that were not like you.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

It took a considerable time for the crew to get themselves together enough to keep moving. Still shaken from what they had seen in the park they all moved in silence. No one spoke, they did not want to as they tried to absorb what they had just seen. Finally as they cleared another street they came across something buried in the rubble of a collapsed house but the top half was visible above the rubble that had half buried it Coming closer they saw the distinctive gun stalk and plunger bent and twisted out of shape as the large damaged casing was split open. The sight of those who had either been briefed about the Daleks or otherwise had encountered them before or both was enough to send them reaching for their weapons. However there was no movement or reaction to their presence as they moved closer. Lisa, Greer and Rush feeling more confident moved close enough to see through the gap in the casing. What they saw inside surprised them immensely, it was a pale pink squid like creature with one eye in its centre was sitting in the middle of a bank of small computers. Its eye was closed and the squid was unmoving but as Lisa peered closer it suddenly sprang open startling all of them and making Lisa jump backwards. Then the lights on the top of the battered dome lit up and an electronic voice said in a shrill but slurred voice.

"Exterminate."

Greer wasted no time, he lifted his salvaged Ogron blaster and fired through the narrow gap in the casing illuminating the inside with a sickly green light. The creature inside screamed in pain as it was torn to pieces on a cellular level and the lights on the top of the dome went out. Looking again the three could see the place where the creature had been. Rush discarding his arrogant self-confidence and belief he knew best for once turned to the Doctor and asked him.

"What is that?"

"A Dalek." The Doctor said grimly. "What they really are beneath the metal casing, nearly helpless squids created by a complete but intelligent moron in a laboratory to be what he thought would be the ultimate creature. He removed all of their emotions besides hate, programmed them to believe that they were the supreme beings in the universe and then placed the mutated creature inside the machine. From then on the Daleks were born." He said remembering the events of their creation vividly as he had actually been there. The decision to spare the creatures from destruction was something that he had really come to regret in later incarnations especially in the lead up to the Time War and during the war itself. His own reasoning for sparing them seemed pointless in the light of day when you considered the death toll the creatures had inflicted on the universe and all the lives that they had ruined. The faces of the humans and two Ancients around him were incredulous at the creature they had seen. Some of them had seen Daleks before but the idea that they were just helpless squids programmed by a complete madman to think they were superior inside a metal suit made the idea that they were the supreme beings in the universe almost laughable however advanced they were. Brody shook his head in disbelief and remarked.

"So the most dangerous creatures are just an experiment gone too far run by a maniac hiding inside a metal casing?" He said almost finding it too much to believe but Volker went a step further.

"Creatures that are so scared of the universe outside that they would rather destroy everything and everyone or failing that crush them into the ground instead of trying to co-exist."

"Perhaps." Claire said wanting to not let them get caught up in these thoughts. "But they are still obscenely dangerous, they destroyed _Destiny_ remember and killed all the people back there." She added hoping to remind them how dangerous the Daleks were. That sobered everyone up and turning to the Doctor he nodded before the group continued on their way.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As they moved deeper into the city centre they discovered more signs of the battle that had happened here. More bodies of Timelord civilians scattered here and there but also some destroyed Daleks too. They discovered a whole squad of them looking like they had been rammed into by something like a freight train. Alina saw a Dalek gun stick that had broken off from its casing and carefully picked the weapon up. Lisa Park saw what she was doing and walked over to inspect the weapon herself. She saw a few broken off orbs from the lower half of a dalek just lying on the floor and she got an idea.

While the Russian junior lieutenant and the American scientist were both conspiring with the damaged components Claire found herself distracted by something she saw on a wall not far past the broken squad of Daleks. Two words that appeared to have been blasted into the wall by an energy weapon.

NO MORE.

She turned to the Doctor and Clara who had also seen the words but the dark look in the Doctor's eyes made her decide against asking him about it knowing that it must be bad territory for the Doctor to have that look in his eyes. So they all moved on hoping that they might reach the eastern district without incident but of course it was a vain hope.

Ten minutes later their luck ran out as they passed a small dark alcove without checking that it was empty first. As the group moved onwards a battered and dirty Dalek glided gently and almost silently out of the alcove. No one heard a thing till it cried out.

"EXTERMINATE!"

It fired its fully functioning weapon striking one of the people that had been bringing up the rear of their column. His body seemed to glow with an inhuman blue energy as he cried out in agony before falling to the ground dead. They all turned around and saw the unfortunate victim killed by the Dalek causing them all too instinctively dive for cover in the ruined buildings and piles of rubble around them. The Dalek kept firing but now that the crew had some limited cover they could avoid its blasts. Those that were armed began to return fire but the bullets bounced off the still strong armoured casing of the Dalek as did the energy weapon blasts. Claire took careful aim with her own blaster and fired proving all those hours on the range counted for something she managed to hit the Dalek in the eye stalk blowing it clean off. The Dalek was horrified and immediately started firing randomly in every direction as it cried out in distress.

"My vision is impaired, I cannot see! My vision is impaired, I cannot see!" Spinning around wildly the Dalek just kept repeating the same phrase as it fired wildly. The crew all ducked down behind whatever cover they had managed to find to avoid the deadly blue blasts that had killed their comrade. Then behind the broken wall that shielded them Alina and Lisa managed as dust from one of the Dalek's blasts drifted down onto them to fit one of the Dalek energy cells onto the gun stick they had found. It started to hum gently which was nearly impossible to hear over the wild cries of the Dalek and its crazed fire. Hoping that they had done this right and it was not about to blow up in their faces the two women got to their feet and fired their jury-rigged weapon. Their quick work was rewarded when a blue beam of energy just like the one being fired at them emerged from the gun stick and struck the blinded Dalek. It instantly screamed in pain as the casing was blown open and the creature inside killed by the same sort of weapon it was using. A small explosion erupted as the top half was blown wipe open causing everyone to look away but when they looked back they saw the casing of the Dalek on fire and the creature obviously dead.

Getting up slowly from their hiding places the crew came back together and all looked at Lisa and Alina who were still holding their makeshift weapon.

"Thank you ladies you have just saved our skins." General Young told them relieved. Everyone started mumbling their thanks as the group moved forward again this time with much greater care.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

For the next few hours they moved forward without incident but as they finally were getting close to the Eastern District they discovered an apparent short cut through a wrecked building. Many of them looked unsure as they moved inside. It looked very unstable and liable to collapse at any moment.

"Perhaps we should find another way through Doctor." Clara suggested as she heard a worrying creak coming from one of the building supports. The Doctor waved her concerns aside with an easy wave and said.

"It will be fine so come on." He said turning to the rest of the group who were all looking nervously at the ruined structure. "Time is wasting so they say although technically time does not waste away." And he started off on a quiet lecture on the nature of time that might on any other day have fascinated some members of the group but right now they were all too concerned on the building around them.

They all entered through the slightly lopsided entrance and moved carefully and quietly through the damaged corridors. It was a wide building rather than a tall building but some of the corridors had collapsed so it took a considerable time to find a way through to the other side of the building. Finally as they backtracked to avoid a blocked path they discovered a junction with two clear corridors. The Doctor licked his finger and held it up in front of him and waited a moment before telling them.

"This way." But as he said it a vibration started in the building's walls. As dust as debris started falling from the ceiling Young fearing a collapse called out.

"Get out now down there." He shouted pointing in the direction that the Doctor had indicated. Everyone started moving forward down the corridor in a frenzy as the shaking continued. However in the confusion Eli, Ginn, Kate and Chloe all ran down the wrong corridor which was beginning to fall apart behind them. Seeing the light in the distance everyone still unaware of the separation ran faster reaching the door which was thankfully ajar and leading out into a wide courtyard which could comfortable house all of their people. When they finally reached the centre as those at the rear of the building had cleared the exit they all stopped around a statue of a timelord in regal robes. Then just as they stopped a cloud of dust erupted from the open door behind them. Thankful at the near miss they all got their bearings to get going when suddenly Matt suddenly noticed someone was missing.

"Chloe? Chloe?" He shouted out trying to find her in the crowd. Realising that they had missing people Claire and Young quickly started doing a headcount while Camille helped Matt look for his missing girlfriend. Claire thanks to her photographic memory quickly realised how many were missing and who they were. She turned to Young and told him.

"Eli, Ginn, Chloe and Kate but." She said reaching out with her mind. "They are okay."

Brody and Volker who had looked back down the corridor to see if they could find the missing personnel came over to them as did Camille and Matt.

"It's completely blocked, no chance of getting back that way." Matt looked particularly strained at the idea his girlfriend was trapped behind a collapsed corridor but Claire assured him.

"I can sense them over that way." She said pointed in the direction of a wall. "They are okay just lost."

"We have to go back." Camille said not wanting to lose anymore personnel. Young shook his head and told her.

"We will have to find another way around." Young said mindful of the blocked corridor and smooth wall which stretched at least twenty feet in the air.

"I hope they will be alright." Camille said concerned as Matt looked ready to protest but stopped when he realised they were right. The way they had come was blocked and the wall would be nearly impossible to climb so they would have to find another way around.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The four missing crew members all meanwhile had found their own way out of the collapsing building. Emerging into a public street they all kept running forward to avoid the cloud of dust that erupted behind them. Covered slightly in dust the quartet all leaned against a building nearby to get their breath back. That was when they realised they were alone.

"Where are the others?" Ginn asked suddenly nervous at them being alone in this desolate unknown area. The other three looked around and realised to their great concern that the rest of the group was not here.

"I don't know but if they are okay then they will head east, so we do too." Kate said taking charge like the military officer she had once been. Chloe was particularly worried about Matt but none of them had time to worry about the missing members of their group because they were suddenly ambushed as six Daleks quickly emerged from hiding all around them.

"Halt." The lead Dalek ordered as the surprised humans went to run. They all looked around and saw to their dismay that all their exits had been blocked by the Daleks and they had clear shots at each of them. They all closed their eyes as they honestly thought that it was the end but were surprised to hear what the Daleks said next.

"You will move ahead of us and follow my directions. Now!" It screeched sharply and with a feeling growing dread the four humans obeyed its instructions. They had no other choice at the moment but to try and stay alive till a chance of escape revealed itself.

If it ever did.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The rest of the group unaware of the danger that their four missing comrades were currently in looked for a way to go back and find them only to be blocked by more rubble so with some reluctance they kept on going east hoping to find another way that would lead them back to their friends.

But suddenly they were surprised by a sudden ambush, fearing it was Daleks they raised their weapons ready to go out in a blaze of glory only for them to realise to their great relief that instead of metal Daleks they were surrounded by men wearing black or dark red battle armour holding crimson coloured rifles.

"Don't shoot." The Doctor cried out quickly seeing the soldiers both human and Timelord were a little trigger happy and seeing that they were not Daleks the Timelord soldiers lowered their weapons. The lead soldier called out.

"Come with us." And then started walking off with his men. With a shared look of anxiety the group followed. They led through a series of what the Doctor would have called temporary sky trenches but he did not tell them that. Finally after they moved through the last set they saw a sight before them that nearly brought tears to the Doctor's eyes.

Timelords were milling around all over the place, not just soldiers but ordinary citizens. Sitting on long tables sharing meals while children played under their watchful eye. Soldiers and other workers securing buildings so they could house the refugees that had come to call the safe zone their home. Although the people looked tired and weary there was a glint in their eyes that shone brightly. They had hope something that had been completely absent the last time that the Doctor was here. Clara could well remember the images shown to her when the tenth, eleventh and war doctors had all been getting ready to use the Moment to end the Time War. She was sure that some the people she had seen were here in front her right now.

They looked up to see the new arrivals and were surprised to see humans but when they saw the Doctor they all realised he must have brought them here. His association with humans was well known. But they were broken from any contact with the civilians when a soldier still in full battle dress walked up to the fresh arrivals.

"Doctor." He said with a smile his short brown hair visible as he removed his helmet coming up to give the Doctor a firm handshake. The Doctor recognised him as the soldier that he had borrowed a weapon from to write his message; no more to the High Council and Daleks. The soldier had not forgotten that this man had saved his life that day by ramming the Daleks with his Tardis.

"Soldier." He said back but without any emotion to it.

"Well it's good to see you again, we really need help around here. We still have people lost out there and the Daleks are still around." He reported. "If you could get the city sensor station on line then we should be able to find out where they are." He suggested. He really would appreciate some help with that, he had no real engineers to do the work and it would really help them find any other survivors still out there lost in the ruins as well as how many Daleks there were still here. The current estimate was about a hundred or so but no one could be sure until they got more data.

The Doctor looked ready to deny the appeal but Claire answered for him.

"I'm sure he'd be delighted. In the meantime we have lost some of our people out there. If you could help that would be appreciated." She said worried about the others that had been separated from them. The Doctor looked like he was about to say something to deny her assurance that he would help when the Soldier answered Claire's own appeal for help.

"I was about to send some of my people out to try and find more survivors. If you want you could tag along." He turned to one of his me and told him. "Take the Doctor to sensor station, I'll take whoever wants to go to meet up with the rest of the recon team. The rest of you can rest here and find something to eat." With a defeated sigh the Doctor realised that it was best to do what the others had roped him into while Matt, Claire, Greer, Vanessa and Kathy all followed the Soldier. The rest of the group headed over to an abandoned long table and sat down to break before they got something to eat from the makeshift soup kitchen that was not too far away.

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It had been a simple job for the Doctor to fix the city's sensor network, all it really needed was to be recalibrated and a few components repaired. So once that job was done the Doctor had gone to the Travel capsule centre and found much to his dismay that most of the capsules were in fact broken but he rolled up his sleeves and with a determined whistle he selected the least damaged capsule and began the work of fixing it. It would hopefully not take him long, he was used to fixing far more temperamental machines than this capsule leading his thoughts back to his Tardis. He worried about what might have happened to it. It should have survived the destruction of the Ancient ship _Destiny_ and made an emergency landing on Gallifrey the nearest planet. But as to where it might have come down was worrying him. Once he got to the Capital that was going to have to be a big priority to find out where the blue box had ended up.

Outside Clara had been wandering around the safe zone looking to see if she could help anywhere but it seemed that the 'Soldier' had gotten things running very efficiently so she decided to wander and find something to distract her while the recon party went out to look for people in the ruined city. Just as she turned a street corner she saw a building that looked a lot like the National Gallery in London. Her curiosity piqued she walked carefully up the stairs and into the building discovering to her slight amusement that this was a gallery too. Along the walls hung the three dimensional paintings that the War Doctor had referred to as Stasis cubes, moments in time captured and suspended for all to see in a pocket universe. She moved along the halls admiring the scenes that were suspended around her till she reached the end of one of the largest halls and she saw something that took her completely by surprise.

"How can that be here?" She asked aloud in shock.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The recon team however was creeping along a dusty and seemingly abandoned building when they saw a squad of Daleks beneath them in the ruins of a hall.

"Right then." One of the Timelord soldiers said as he lifted a bazooka like blaster and pointed it straight at one of the Daleks only for Kathy to stop him with a hiss.

"What are doing?" She told him sharply. He looked at her incredulously like she had lost her mind.

"What we were ordered to do; kill Daleks." He went to aim his bazooka till Kathy grabbed it and told him sternly.

"We have little cover up here and the moment that you fire they will have our position." The blonde pilot told him. "We need to kill Daleks and survive." Looking at the soldier like he was an idiot she looked around and saw the unstable looking roof above them that looked like over a hundred tonnes of rubble just waiting to crush their enemies beneath it. She turned to face Claire asked. "Could it work and not crush us?"

Claire looked up and studied the roof that Kathy had indicated and carefully pulled out her scanner and took a few discrete scans before smiling and telling her.

"Hell yeah, if you hit it in the right place. I'll do it." Claire said taking the bazooka off the reluctant Timelord soldier and aimed carefully at the spot that she had calculated was the best target for what they wanted. Hoping her grasp of structural engineering did not fail her Claire fired. A strong blast of red energy erupted from the end of the weapon and struck precisely the spot she wanted.

The Daleks reacted when they heard the shot, but as they turned to start blasting away at the raised platform where they were hiding the roof started collapsing. Small bits at first but as the smaller chunks came away the bigger ones followed covering the daleks that had not moved to avoid the falling debris. More and more wreckage came down on top of the position where the Daleks had been until finally it was illuminated by a sun beam from the hole where the roof had given way revealing a huge pile of rubble and no sign of the Daleks. Getting up very slowly Claire scanned the pile of debris and smiled when she confirmed that the Daleks were dead.

The amazed Timelord soldiers looked at the humans impressed. Their training taught them to go straight at the enemy while the humans seeing they had little chance with that approach had turned the environment to their advantage. The Timelords had not fought a true war in millions of years and of course the High Council and many other upper class Timelords would never imagine that there might be something to be learned from 'primitive ape descendants' or any other races that they considered beneath them. But being a younger and more aggressive culture had led humans like some other species in the universe to be creative in warfare to surprise their opponents by using different tactics.

Something these soldiers were going to learn from the humans.

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The four members of the _Destiny_ crew that had been captured by the Daleks had been brought to a burned out building that apparently the Daleks were using as a holding centre. Primitive holding cells with metal gates held dozens of civilians that had been captured slowly starving to death as feeding them was extremely low on their jailor's agenda. Some water was given to them if they were lucky but many had given up hope, expecting to die in this horrible place that in a cruel twist of irony had once been a birthing centre which could accurately simulate all kinds of environments for mothers who wanted to have their babies in different surroundings. A couple of the women in here had once availed themselves of its services and remembered being here so full of hope when they had given birth to their children here.

Eli held Ginn and Chloe in their own cramped cell which at a guess had once been a storeroom only now it was empty and the original ornate door replaced with a metal gate. While Eli tried to be strong for Ginn and Chloe he was terrified inside. There was no reasoning with these creatures and seemingly no way out. Kate stood at the gate looking out as she tried to open the door but it seemed to be solid. She could hardly believe the journey they had suddenly found themselves on that had led her to this place. All she had been hoping to do was go to _Destiny_ to do performance evaluations and catch up with some old friends at the same time. Now she was in a prison cell with three of her former shipmates on some planet far away from home. She was broken from these thoughts when she saw a few Timelord civilians being directed through the corridor by a group of Daleks. They were all wincing in pain as untreated injuries which looked like they might also be infected made their presence known. They also looked physically exhausted as they fell to the floor.

"Get up." The Daleks ordered but the Timelord at the front of the group said weakly.

"I can't! Please just let us rest!" The Dalek's response was quick and blunt.

"No. Exterminate."

Without even allowing the man to absorb the statement the Dalek turned its gun stick on him and fired the bright blue aura that illuminated his skeleton as he cried out in agony. The other collapsed Timelords did not have to wait long to join him as the other Daleks in the group took aim and fired on the other exhausted prisoners cutting them down mercilessly.

The horror at what they had just seen rendered the four humans speechless, none of them had believed that any creature could be that callous to cut down people like that for so little reason.

"That was murder." Kate said in complete shock to the Dalek nearest the cell door. It did not turn to face her but it did swivel its eye stalk to face her and said in its electronic tone.

"Daleks are supreme, all other lifeforms are weak. The weak are to be destroyed." It said like this excused its behaviour only for Eli once his shock had given way to anger to start a rant at the terrible creatures.

"Yet you are always destroyed! You have attacked Earth and every time you have been defeated. You are always defeated. Where is your fleet! They are gone! Only the truly weak would claim to be supreme to cover their own inferiority!" He almost snarled at the Dalek which immediately turned to face them and looked ready to kill Eli and the rest of them right there on the spot when suddenly they were distracted by a voice behind them.

"Hello. May I have your attention please?" It was a posh English female voice and everyone turned to see a new figure had appeared in the hallway a few metres away from the Daleks who instantly turned to face this new person.

"Who are you?" One of the Daleks demanded as they all focused their gun stalks on the mystery woman. The others got up and came to join Kate at the door to their cell and get a look at the woman that seemed to be insane enough to try attracting the attention of the Daleks. When they got their first look they were surprised; she appeared to be human or rather human like. She was about Kate's height with long blonde hair that fell just past her shoulders in almost wild waves. She was wearing a light grey sleeveless jacket over a white dress with black tights and white shoes. All her clothes appeared ragged and dirty, the tights were covered in tears in particular. She was still incredibly beautiful Eli thought but mindful of the fact that his girlfriend was right here he desperately tried not to stare.

The mystery woman on the other hand did not look in the slightest bit concerned about the fact that six Daleks were all pointing their weapons at her and with a smile told them in a mocking like you speaking to an idiot.

"Oh look, you do not know what do to if someone is not afraid of you do you? You can only pile on more useless threats or try and exterminate them. It is disappointing rally that you have not learned anything from the Time War."

"You are you? Answer or you will be exterminated!" The Daleks shrilled at her and she only gave them a smirk, one of the Daleks fired a blast at her only for the blonde's brown eyes to suddenly glow an incredible swirling gold and the beam stop in mid-air.

"So disappointing." The woman said her eyes still glowing with a slight shake of the head and then made a gesture with her hand and before the eyes of the astonished prisoners who could see, the Daleks in the corridor suddenly seemed to fall apart into dust! All of them at the same time and the two other Daleks down the corridor that were coming up behind the mystery woman who to the prisoner appeared like a goddess. Then the locks on the cell doors suddenly sprang open allowing Kate to step outside the cell with her people. In the other cells their fellow prisoners cautiously walked up to the cell doors and almost believing it was a trick to demoralise them only to have their hopes be driven higher by the doors swinging open. They all looked up to look to the mystery woman for an explanation but she had disappeared into thin air. Stepping carefully over the piles of dalek dust Kate wasted no time and said to all the now freed prisoners.

"Right let's get out of here! I have not a clue what just happened but I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth so let's beat it." She ordered. Although the Timelord prisoners did not get the human metaphor they understood the meaning behind it and they started moving quickly towards the exit. With one last look as to where the mystery blonde had been the four humans joined them. As they all moved as quickly as they could in the direction of the safe Eastern District they did not see the mystery blonde who had reappeared on the roof of the building that had once held them and she smiled at them before disappearing again hoping that with that slight nudge things would get back on track.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Unaware of their friends escape from the Dalek makeshift prison, the squad of Timelord soldiers and _Destiny_ crewmembers were continuing to look for surviving Timelords still out in the ruins of the city while taking the opportunity to hunt down any surviving Daleks. Currently they were working with Brody, Volker and a second squad of soldiers that had come out to help them to rescue a trapped family of Timelords that were stuck inside a collapsed building.

"Right that's it." Brody said to them as he and Volker cleared away the last of large chunks of rubble that had blocked the entrance to the building allowing the people inside to and be seen for the first time since they had fallen. They were scared and covered in dust but otherwise they were unhurt. It was only a small family by Gallifreyan standards; a middle aged man and woman with a teenage daughter and younger son. They all held each other fiercely and looked up as if it might be their last moment but then Brody extended his hand. The man looked at him suspiciously but with a weary glint of hope he reached out and took Brody's hand and let himself and his family be pulled to safety.

"We will take them back to the safe zone." One of the soldiers said and he started over to help the family find their way to the safety zone with the rest of the squad and Brody and Volker. With that duty now done Matt looked around with Greer and saw what looked like car but without wheels left broken and abandoned at the side of the road. He turned to one of the Timelord soldiers and asked.

"What powers those things?" The soldier looked at him with a confused expression and answered his question not seeing how it could be relevant.

"Those older air cars are powered by chemical fuel cells. We replaced them with capacitors eventually these are vintage vehicles no use outside a museum." Greer however turned to Claire who had degrees in chemistry and asked.

"Can you make something out of those fuel cells?"

Claire gave him a smile and told him.

"Greer, I'm hurt you even feel the need to ask." She and Vanessa turned to the air car and carefully lifted open the hoods. Removing the unstable fuel cells and a few other components the two set to work confusing the Timelord soldiers even more. After a moment or two they presented six modified fuel cells and told them.

"Makeshift mines." The reason now dawned on the Timelord soldiers. Later they proved their value when the mines destroyed a dalek patrol.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The Doctor back at the safety zone was making good progress on fixing the damaged travel capsule when Clara rushed into the capsule and ran up to him.

"Doctor you have to see this!" She said trying to get his attention but the Doctor was too caught up in his work and absentmindedly replied.

"Clara it can wait." But Clara was not going to let him wave off her discovery that easily and she grabbed the lapels of his jacket and pulled him around to face her and telling him quickly.

"No this is important come now!" She told him realising she was being rude but it really was important that he see what she had found. Looking annoyed his work was going to be delayed the Doctor decided to humour his human companion. Following her quick march to the gallery she had discovered he was about to ask her again what it was that so important when they emerged into one of the large halls and he saw what had so shocked his friend.

"How is that here?" Clara asked as she and the Doctor looked at the painting known to them as 'Gallifrey Falls No More'. The scene showing the city on fire and under attack from the Daleks was exactly as they both remembered it except for one detail that Clara had noticed when she was examining it. "But the title is not engraved yet." Looking at the blank title plate the Doctor nodded coming forward to examine it closely himself. Looking around him he could see the other Timelord paintings that had been in the Undergallery in London hidden under the National Gallery.

"A past version of the painting that we saw in London." The Doctor concluded and feeling slightly solemn he took out his sonic screwdriver and held it at the blank name plate and pressed it hard against the metal. Activating his screwdriver Clara watched on as smoke emerged from where the end of the screwdriver was pressing against the metal as the Doctor began engraving a name into the plate. After a few minutes he was done and pulled back revealing the name of the painting was now in place. The Doctor turned to face Clara and told her.

"When we have finished our business in the Capital and gotten the Tardis back we have to come back here and retrieve them because one day I'm going to use them so will the Zygons." He added remembering the occasion well the day that his War, Tenth and Eleventh selves had decided rather than destroying Gallifrey to try and save it instead.

"And where is the Tardis?" Clara asked having been wondering about the blue box for a while now and the Doctor gave her a glare before leaving the Gallery and his confused assistant behind.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The escaped prisoners were all still trying to find their way to the safe zone when one of the older female Timelords stopped and said.

"Stop just for a moment and let me catch my breath." She said wheezing and Kate was about to insist they keep going when she saw how most of the prisoners looked ready to past out from exhaustion so she with great reluctance told them.

"Right ten minute break, I'll watch from there." Kate said indicating a slightly raised position that would give her a clear view of the surrounding area. She left them to find a vaguely comfortable seat or place to lie down to get their breath back before getting back on the move. She was not happy about stopping but some of the people were on their last legs and after seeing the Daleks cut down the people in that prison she was determined not to leave anyone behind. Chloe went to the injured ones and started putting all her medical training to use helping where she could.

Eli and Ginn sat down and thought back to all that they had seen today.

"I thought the Lucian Alliance were evil, but these Daleks are on another level." Ginn said with a slight fear in her eyes at how monstrous the creatures here seemed to be. Eli however told her.

"Evil is evil, I think the Alliance is just a different kind of evil. But regardless we have to stand up and fight." He said giving her a gentle kiss which she returned.

Chloe was making a temporary sling for a man that had a broken arm and told him when she was done with as warm a smile as she could manage.

"There. Just be careful not to knock it till it has properly set." However Timelords differed from humans they both had similar shaped skeletons so setting bones should be the same. The easing of the pain was hopefully proof that she was right and the man returned her smile and thanked her gratefully causing her smile to widen. Unfortunately the break was disrupted by Kate shouting.

"Daleks move." As a squad of daleks appeared at their rear and began to pursue the escaping prisoners.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The recon team after finding a few more survivors in the ruin of the city was looking for more people or more daleks. She led the team into what looked like a playground of some description and seeing the abandoned and broken equipment around her brought a lump to her throat as she saw in her mind's eye the children that must have once played here. Just as she was about to turn her back and leave she heard a small cough. Turning around quickly she looked for the source of the noise and not seeing anything she decided to extend out her telepathy to find the source of the cough. Her eyes turned towards a small dried waterway that seemed to flow under a small hill before reappearing on the other side. Creeping slowly forward as she held her hand up to prevent the others from following her she moved to the entrance of the tunnel under the hill and what she saw made her heart swell with concern and sympathy.

Inside the tunnel where a pack of about half a dozen small children, evidently using the tunnel as a place to hide. Even in the poor light of the tunnel Claire could see how filthy and malnourished the children looked. It broke her heart to see children only looking about six or so Earth years of age could end up like this. She extended a hand to the children but they shuffled away from her further down the tunnel. Pulling her hand back Claire felt tears in her eyes at seeing these children so broken. She had an idea and reached into her pack getting out a ration bar that she had been given by one of the Russian personnel that had joined the group and opened it before carefully sliding herself into the tunnel. The children looked ready to shuffle further away but in as gentle a voice as she could manage she told them.

"It is alright. Look I have got some food." She said holding out the ration bar hoping to earn some trust off these abandoned children. Seeing the suspicious looks in their eyes Claire carefully took a small bite out of the bar to prove to them it was safe and edible. Seeing her eat the bar and then extend it back towards them, the nearest child a small girl with knotted brown hair carefully started reaching out to take the bar while Claire started projecting as much positive emotion at them as she dared. The girl snatched the bar and took a bite the instant pleasure on her face was seen straight away as the bar was passed to the others who also took real pleasure in what might have been their first food in a while. Claire again extended out her hand to the girl who now looked at her with less fear but was still nervous. Continuing to project as much good energy to her as she could Claire very slowly moved forward to draw closer to the girl without scaring her. As the tiny hand of the child met Claire's much larger one she carefully closed her hand around the child's before shaking it gently and started gently pulling the child with her as she backed up the tunnel. The other children followed so as to not be separated from each other. When Claire emerged backwards from the tunnel the others looked relieved only to be startled when the small girl followed her and then the other five children behind her. Claire turned to them and said desperately.

"Get some food and water now." Obeying her request without question they went into their packs to find the requested items. The children looked up at the other adults with guarded curiosity but stood closely together and seemed to gravitate towards to Claire who gave them her canteen of water. She turned to each child and gave them an equal few sips each so as to not overwhelm them. This started to make the children feel more comfortable around her and the others who then started offering them small chunks of food to which they eagerly took.

"You are going to be alright now." Claire assured them as they all looked up at her. She gave them a warm smile which slowly eased the scared expressions on the faces of the children. She saw them sliver in the cold air and took a blanket out of her backpack too and wrapped it around their shoulders. It was big enough to wrap them all in and they all looked much more comfortable with the warmth of the blanket. Then they were disturbed some noises that sounded like weapon fire coming from a nearby street. The children looked ready to bolt back to their hidden hiding place but Matt and Greer blocked the way. As they got a better view they saw a group of people being chased by a patrol of Daleks and were barely keeping ahead of them. Seeing the creatures that had inflicted this horror on innocent children like the traumatised brood around her Claire's thoughts darkened as she raised her hands and reached out to the pile of rubble that the daleks were passing close too. Seeing what she was doing and angry herself Vanessa joined in as the rubble started to levitate and pelt the daleks who were caught completely by surprise at the sudden and unseen attack. It knocked them into a square area of land between a low wall and a broken building where more and more debris and rubble was piled onto the struggling daleks by Claire and Vanessa as everyone else looked on astonished. Soon the horrible creature were buried up to the grill just under the dome. Lowering their arms now that their work was done Vanessa turned to the Timelord soldier who had the bazooka and told him.

"Well what are you waiting for? Take them out, they can't fight back." The man looked startled at first then quickly moved over to finish off the nearly buried Daleks while they were held immobile scared at the power that these two women had and the anger that had fuelled it. Matt meanwhile went over to see the fleeing group and then stopped still when he saw Chloe. Calling out to her he ran over, she met him half way and pulled him into a fierce hug while Matt swung her gently around. Greer went up to Eli, Ginn and Kate who all greeted the marine and long-time friend warmly happy to be with familiar faces again. Claire just smiled and looked down at the children who all looked at her with awe inspired looks. She offered the little girl her hand and with a sense of wonder that seemed to bring life back to her face, the child took it.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Leading the civilians they had found back to the safe zone they were greeted with open arms when they arrived. The sight of other survivors lifted the moods of all people present but the Doctor when he saw it brought a tear to his eye but not of sadness but joy. Seeing his people after such a catastrophe not only surviving but getting back on their feet and rebuilding their lives after they had been torn apart just made him feel so alive. He could not even comprehend how he had planned to justify killing these innocent, loving people. He felt Clara wrapping her arms around him as she too along with the other humans felt the joy of the moment.

These were people concerned with living in the now while dreaming of a better future not planning to destroy the universe and all the brilliant and beautiful flawed life within it. But he thought as his thoughts turned darker the High Council were still planning to enact their Ultimate Sanction or at least they might be if he knew those old corrupt fools like he thought he did. They were something he would have to deal with and soon. Drax had heard his plan and given it his approval, he like the Doctor wanted the Council gone. For Gallifrey and the rest of the universe to have any chance of a future the High Council and more importantly Rassilon had to go. He turned to the assembled crew of Destiny with their Russian allies and told them all.

"The capsule will be ready to go in another day so any business you need to take care of finish it before then."

With that he walked away leaving the rest of them confused as they were puzzled at the dark look on his face and Clara worried for her best friend. There was something he was not telling them but the intensity of the look in his eyes made her hesitate to ask him what it was. But she had a feeling that the answer lay in their next and final destination after over two weeks of journeying across Gallifrey.

The Capital.

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 _Thank you to everyone who has reviewed or is otherwise following this story, knowing that people are reading is what keeps me writing_

 _Next Chapter - Finale_


	7. Chapter 7

_I do not own Doctor Who or Stargate Universe_

 **Chapter 7 – The Last Stand**

The capsule was waiting eagerly for the crew when they were finally ready to board it. Entering it they were waved off by the people in Arcadia before waving back cheerfully themselves. The children that they had rescued from the park all looked tearful at Claire going away but she gave them a hug and told them.

"We are the sum of our memories. Even though I will not be here with you, I will be in your memories here and in here." She said putting her hand on the centre of the youngest girl's head and then her chest were her twin hearts were beating. The children did not really understand but they nodded and Claire gave each of them a comforting hug and with tears in her own eyes turned to face the Soldier who led the people here and told him. "Take care of them." The Soldier nodded looking down at the children before Claire walked off to the capsule trying not to let the children see the tears in her eyes.

Once inside the capsule they were all blown away at its great interior space, more than a hundred times the size of the exterior shell. Inside it was a white room with same round things on the wall which could easily have beaten a large church hall in size. There were a lot of raised benches around a centre spire like console where the Doctor was fiddling with the controls. Claire and Clara however had seen the inside of the Doctor's Tardis and were slightly interested in the differences in decoration but little more. To that end the two women started moving the surprised people to take their seats. Eli was very vocal about the strange interior inside the capsule.

"This is incredible, how did your people create a separate inner dimension without rupturing the casing?" He asked the Doctor who ignored him Clara then hurried him over to a seat so the Doctor could finish the preparations for what hopefully would be the last leg of their journey going to the Capital and the seat of the High Council of the Timelords.

"Old machines, so many people just discard them. Newer is not necessarily better." The Doctor muttered to himself with distain as he continued to make adjustments to the aged capsule. Normally they did not have as much interior space as this but this one was a museum piece from the days when travel capsules operated more like a bus service with dedicated drivers or automation as in the later models. This however was a manual model that needed a driver. It also would take about ten minutes to reach the Capital in this jury-rigged state and given the high level of heavy security around the Capital right now it would be impossible to sneak in undetected so the High Council would know that he here almost immediately. He looked at the humans around here and hesitated as his hands hovered over the controls. He was about to take them into the vipers pit, he should at least give them honest warning about what they were walking into. So with a slight hesitation he turned to face them and said loudly enough for them to all hear him.

"Listen all of you." The group stopped chatting and turned to face him giving him their full attention. "We have been through some tense experiences since we met. We have all been cast adrift and walked across Gallifrey together fought creatures and helped where we could. It is rare that I find myself so proud to have stood and worked with soldiers, but I'm genuinely proud to stand with you. But now this should be the last hurdle to overcome and despite how dangerous the last few have been this one could genuinely destroy us all. The High Council of the Timelords is not going to take well to having what they would call 'lower lifeforms' on their planet regardless of the good you have done." He said seeing the affronted look they all had at being called lower lifeforms like they were mere animals to be waved aside as no concern. The Doctor did not allow them time to give any outraged outbursts before he continued to speak.

"But this is the only place where you can get home, I have a few friends I can call on to get you back to Earth but all I will say is watch your backs here. You have all seen the sort of enemies I have by now and the Timelords are more dangerous than any of them. So if any of you want to stay in Arcadia where you will be safe then this is your stop, I will return for you when it is safe." He said gesturing towards the still open door. The humans and two Ancients in the group all looked around at each other as they considered the Doctor's suggestion that they stay in Arcadia till it was safe for them to come to the Capital and be sent home. No words were said as the seconds and then minutes slipped by but no one moved from their seats. Finally as the tenth minute past the Doctor put his hands on the controls before turning around and saying.

"Last chance."

Surprising them all Claire Williams got to her feet and told the Doctor with complete seriousness.

"Doctor, this crew has been through hell together. We have stood side by side as we faced worst nightmares than we could ever imagine having. If one of us goes, we all go." She said and looking around her she could see the looks of agreement on the faces of the people around her from General Young to the lowest ranking soldier a Russian private. So she sat back down and the Doctor activated the controls. The doors immediately closed and the control column lit up with blue light in strips from the floor to the ceiling and a gentle hum filled the ears of all who were present.

They felt nothing as the capsule apparently took off Clara was looking intently at her friend wondering what he was keeping from her. She knew him well enough to know that there was a piece of the puzzle being held back and however she asked he was not going to tell her so she would just have to trust him. Without any further information she just sat back quietly as they made their way to the Capital wondering if the answer would reveal itself when they arrived.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Thanks to the Doctor's careful flying the capsule arrived at the perimeter of the Capital in ten minutes landing on a large pyramid structure that had once served as focusing point for mental energy. The arrival of the capsule was nothing like the grinding noise and fading in and out like the Doctor's Tardis but a pop and then it instantly appeared. The doors slid slowly open with a slight hiss as air escaped the pressurised capsule. The Doctor was the first person to step out of the capsule followed by Clara and Clara and slowly the rest of the people in the capsule emerged onto the open area at the top of the large structure and immediately their breath was taken away as despite whatever way they looked it was an incredible view.

The vast but broken dome that had sealed in the whole of the city was still hanging on in some places making the vast metropolis look like a giant smashed snow globe but if the crew looked out of the smashed dome they could see a vast desert of silver coloured sand and vast lakes of blue water with some vegetation growing around them beyond the city's exterior for as far as the eye could see which was only broken by the large dunes that seemed to be as high as Everest in some places but a ring of crashed Dalek saucers seemed to surround the city like a strange moat.

Turning around to look into the interior of the dome however was a city that was larger than any city on Earth. It stretched further than the eye could with the giant spires in the centre reaching so high into the sky that they rose higher than any Earth building. Smaller buildings clustered all around them and then stretching out beneath the large structure that they were standing on. The buildings all seemed to be made of the same metal that was a very dark red. The Doctor while his allies all stood around studying their surroundings with great interest stared with a very distant look in his eye that worried Clara even more. Something was really worrying the Doctor but he was not going to tell her what it was. Breaking his distant mood the Doctor reached into his pocket and pulled out some kind of small orb and rubbed his thump over its smooth surface before he extended his arm like a baseball player and threw the orb a good forty yards ahead of him. Everyone looked wondering what on Earth the Doctor had just done before the orb stopped falling down towards the surface after a few seconds in freefall before it stopped in mid-air and flew off into the city beyond.

"What was that?" Clara asked him he told her without turning as he watched the orb fly away.

"A thought pod, I need to contact a friend of mine that could help us given that we are going to be arrested in twenty seconds."

"What?" Young said startled but as he finished saying that single word they all found themselves surrounded in a yellow force field. The soldiers went to draw their weapons but they found they could not move. Soldiers then began appearing around them wearing similar armour to that of the soldiers in Arcadia but it was a far brighter red and gold and also spotlessly clean. Despite all the destruction that had been visited upon the city these soldiers were either so vain that they would never allow themselves to be seen with dirty armour or as was more likely they never fought. These were likely some kind of Pretorian Guard that did the bidding of whoever held power here.

"You are invading the Capital of the High Council of the Timelords. You will be held in advance of sentencing. Failure to cooperate with instructions will result in your destruction." The lead soldier said with all the pomp and ceremony of a stuck up peacock. The Doctor seemed unaffected by the force field he could still move and speak but did not attempt to move beyond its boundary. He told one look at the soldiers and said with considerable distain.

"The Chancellery Guard, the thugs of the High Council of old fools and power mad nutters." The soldiers bristled at the insult and looked ready to end the Doctor right where he stood as the humans looked on helplessly. Then one of the soldiers seemed to recognise him.

"That is the Doctor." He said with a sneer. "The chaos loving renegade with picks up pets from Earth. Like that one that you had when you were here last time, certainly looked like the runt of the litter." He said causing the Doctor's face to become alive with anger as he snarled back causing the offending guard to back away in fear even though the Doctor was imprisoned by the force field.

"Her name was Cinder and you are not fit to lick her boots." The painful memories of the young human woman that had probably been the closest thing to a companion that he had had in the incarnation that he had come to call the War Doctor. The orphaned survivor of the planet Moldox who had spent most of her life under a brutal Dalek occupation fighting in the dirt and clinging to survival by the skin of her teeth. He had promised to take her somewhere safe only for the Daleks plans to distract him and yet she had stayed at his side and helped him wherever she could only to give her life to protect him from the traitorous Karlax who the he had repaid in kind by leaving him to be killed by the Daleks.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Not long after they were transported into a holding facility where they all were still suspended. It was like a living hell, they were aware of all around them but they could not move or speak, for Vanessa it was horrible reminder of the memories of one of her alternate selves who had been made a host to a Goa'uld that she had absorbed from her encounter with that weird space and time storm ages ago, the powerless of it being a prisoner in your own body which would no longer obey you. This experience was only easier to bare because she did not have to deal with the evil presence of a Goa'uld in her head. The Doctor prowled around the room still unaffected by the force field probably due to him being a timelord. He seemed to be counting the seconds as if he was waiting for something.

One of the red coloured guards was watching the cell and gave the humans an amused smirk the same kind you might give to a weird but funny shaped statue. If the humans had been able to move at that point they would have scowled at him but he carried on smirking and turned to the Doctor who stopped counting the seconds and turned to face him.

"So I believe the custom on Earth is to give the condemned man a last meal. Is there anything in particular that you would like Doctor?" He asked enjoying the feeling of taunting the legendary Doctor who he believed was going to be soon executed. The Doctor however tilted his head like he would if studying an insignificant specimen in a jar before he smiled and said to the surprised guard.

"No but you should really turn on the air conditioning its boiling in here."

The guard wondered what in Rassilon the mad fool was going on about when he suddenly realised that it was indeed getting hot in here. He started feeling light headed and before he could even think of reaching for the communicator on his belt his legs gave out and he fell to the floor unconscious. Around the building his fellow guards found themselves falling asleep suddenly without even being tired. As the last one fell down a door opened near the cell where the Doctor and his friends were being held revealing a tall blonde woman dressed in a black jumpsuit with an array of tools and weapons attached to the belt. Her face was young with a gleam in the eyes that sparkled with mischief and her blonde hair cut to her shoulders was shiny and full of life. Seeing the Doctor she smiled and held a small rod like device in the air for a moment before placing it back on her belt and going over to the controls. The Doctor asked her with a slight smile.

"Did you use a gas to knock out the guards?" The woman looked momentarily affronted before answering.

"Doctor that is a far too primitive method. Nanogenes are far more my style which of course I protected myself again while you and your friends were protected by the force field but since I deactivated them it's safe for you to come out now." She said and the force field suddenly dropped allowing everyone to move again. Stretching themselves the humans and Ancients all relished their restored mobility while the Doctor said.

"Well however you did it, thank you Rodan. Now take them somewhere safe. I need to deal with some things. I trust you realise why?" He said and Rodan nodded looking more serious for a moment and her eyes revealing a far older mind hid behind them. He had told her some parts of his plan in that thought pod he had sent her and before anyone could say a word the Doctor took off at a run.

"Doctor!" Clara called out but he was gone before she could go after him.

"Why would leave us behind?" Ginn asked confused by the Doctor's behaviour. Rush however was not.

"Too keep us out of the line of fire. Whatever he is planning is obviously dangerous so he is making sure that we are safe before he tries anything."

"Oh enough of the doom and gloom." The blonde Rodan said with her wide smile. "Come on I have this bunch of friends that would be only too happy to hide us all for a while." She said gesturing towards the door but Greer asked with suspicion.

"Why should we trust you?" The blonde did not look phased by his question and told him without missing a beat.

"Oh the fact that you are illegal aliens in a police state. Then there is the fact that these soldiers will wake up in about thirty minutes which is just enough to get out of the Capital is if do not waste time. You do not know the city or how to hide here. Also the fact that if you don't trust me, the High Council will surely kill you but of course if you think you would have a better chance on your own the choice is yours." Rodan said her smile still in place.

"Lead on." Claire said knowing that without the Doctor they had little choice.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Rodan led them to a hover bus like the one that they had used to get to Arcadia and with a slight hesitation they all boarded while Rodan took her place in the cockpit and as soon as they were all aboard Rodan took off and flew straight for the perimeter of the city. The blonde was so focused on her job that she ignored her passengers as they regarded her with suspicion.

"I do not trust her." Greer said, trust was something that did not come easily to him and once given it was nearly unshakable although irretrievable if it was lost. He had been one of the longest doubters in regards to the Doctor after everything that had happened since he had shown up on _Destiny_. It had taken a long time for Greer to warm to him. He was not alone in this, Young and some of the other personnel and Rush still did not fully trust him although they had accepted him as their guide as they began their journey to this city in the hopes that they could get home. They had struggled and lost people along the way but they had all persevered because they wanted to get home and to stay together. But they had been arrested the moment they had arrived here and then frozen before they were to be punished. Given the capabilities of the Timelords that according to some of the people they had spoken to in Arcadia and Hope could rival the ascended in terms of power maybe even supplant them they did not want to imagine what that punishment would be. Then once rescued by Rodan the Doctor had disappeared on them and told Rodan to hide them away.

That did not sit well with some of the more action oriented members of the group but with nothing else to go on and not willing to try and fight the Timelords until they knew more they followed Rodan who had flown the bus out of the city through the broken dome and past the ring of crashed dalek ships. She then landed the bus and told them all in a jocular voice.

"All right last stop, everybody please make sure that you collect your belongings and exit the bus in an orderly fashion. Thank you for travelling with us today."

Looking out of the windows as the near desolate landscape around them the crew hesitated before getting up from their seats and walking out of the bus into the outside world. What surprised them was that instead of being hot outside it was rather cold. Everyone put their cloaks or coats that they had not had to wear since leaving the town they left the Death Zone while Rodan put on a dark purple cloak over her jumpsuit. She ran her hand along the cloak fondly before catching the odd look in their eyes and explained looking rather embarrassed.

"This cloak was the same one that I wore when I first set foot outside the Capital during the Sontaran invasion of Gallifrey. I remember-" But she stopped and then said. "It is probably better I tell you another time. Come on unless they have moved camp they should not be too far."

With that Rodan set off across the desert leaving the crew to follow as best they could. Clara shouted after her.

"Who is not too far?" But Rodan did not answer the question and the crew followed her lead with some reluctance at being led into a desert by a virtual stranger.

The sand reminded those that had had to cross the mountains of Southern Gallifrey of the deep snow that had nearly given them all frostbite. The sand was so fine that it gave way easily under their feet and let them sink inches in. Rodan was used to the terrain here and knew the better ways around the deeper parts but despite her trying to guide them the column of nearly eighty people was so large that it was evitable some people became stuck in some places so the group had to stop and pull them out before they could carry on again.

Clara tried to keep pace with Rodan to ask her want the Doctor was doing but when she went to actually pose the question Rodan turned around and seemed to sense her concerns and told Clara.

"The Doctor has to go and meet several people before he can put his plan into action, people that it is best he meets alone. Do not worry."

Clara was about to say something else when Rodan climbed up a small dune and cried out in success. Wondering what had her so excited the rest of the group moved onto the hill top and saw an encampment below that looked like it belonged on a bronze age planet not the world of the most advanced race in the universe. Rodan called out to the people who were milling about in the camp.

"Hello."

She started down the other side of the dune and very quickly reached the camp where the tribes' people greeted her with open arms. Rodan smiled wide and embraced several of the men and women before picking up one of the small children and giving her a hug before putting her down again. Clearly the ex- _Destiny_ crew thought as they looked on Rodan was well known to these people and was well thought of.

"Now." Rodan said as she saw the tribe's leader Nesbin and his son and daughter Ablif and Presta who had been amongst the group formed by the fourth Doctor to counter the Sontaran invasion of Gallifrey come into view. "I have some new friends with me who need a place to stay for a while." She said drawing their attention to the humans that were still standing on the dunes above.

"What do they want from us?" Nesbin asked looking at them suspiciously. Rodan smiled he never changed she thought to herself before answering.

"They just need a place to stay until it is safe for them to go back to the Capital. Nesbin I will tell you the rest in private." She said firmly with a sharpness that broke any argument breaking her apparently eternal cheerfulness for a moment before Nesbin allowed himself to be led into the nearest canvas tent by Rodan. The sounds of what was being said were muffled by the heavy fabric and fur used to make and decorate the outside of the primitive looking tents. The tribe's people looked up at the humans who stood on the dune and studied them intently knowing from that instinct that was still in the core of their being that these people were not timelords and wondered what they were and more importantly what they wanted.

The humans on the other side also studied the tribe closely wondering if they were going to have to defend themselves. The camp was made up of about hundred or so of these strange people so while they were outnumbered the weapons they had looked to be no more than primitive spears, daggers and hunting bows and arrows. The camp itself showed no sign of the higher technology that was so apparent in the cities of this planet with simple canvas tents and plain carved wooden furniture. The people were dressed in similar skins to those used to decorate and insulate the tents with a headband.

They were broken from this staring contest when Nesbin and Rodan emerged from their tent and Nesbin looking very apprehensive told the visitors.

"They can stay for a few days and only if they can earn their keep by helping us hunt and preparing food and more tents, we need some new ones anyway." He said the last part more quietly. The tribe looked ready to question their leader as did his two children but he ignored them and waved the humans down. Wondering what was going to happen next Young led his people down the slope to the edge of the camp where Nesbin stood. Both men stood almost nose to nose as they sized each other up. The other members of each group took their que from their leaders and regarded each other suspiciously till they were broken from this by a voice coming over from a tent near the centre of the camp.

"Now let us not start banging our heads together." The flap that acted like a door had parted and an extremely old woman emerged. She had very grey hair that looked on the verge of turning white, her skin was weathered by time and her body was slouched as she tried to stand upright.

The older woman was being helped by a younger woman that looked to be in her early to mid-twenties wearing a dark brown leather leotard that looked like it was home made out of roughly cut and prepared animal skin with an orange cloak over it. She had healthy chestnut brown coloured hair and a knife tucked into a pouch on her belt. She scolded the older woman.

"You should be resting Romana. This version of you is nearly worn out." But the older woman said back to her helper.

"Leela if I can stop these people acting like cavemen then I will. There is still some life left in this incarnation even if the war has aged it a thousand years."

"Leela! Romana!" Rodan cried and rushed over to help her friends. "Leela you will get on with these people famously. People from your world Earth."

"I' am not from Earth." Leela said, she came from the Sevateam who the Doctor had told her were descended from settlers from Earth but Rodan was not put off.

"Well they are human just like you." She said feeling a bit embarrassed at her silly assumption but still the fact that Leela was human really did raise a few eyebrows in the _Destiny_ group.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

While the _Destiny_ crew was being introduced to the Tribe the Doctor had remained in the Capital to meet with the people that he hoped would help him the first of which was supposed to meet with him in the service corridors under the city above. It was cold and wet down here, the silence only broken by the occasional drops of water falling into puddles that they had formed. The light was low as the Doctor moved carefully down the long corridor. His ears were alert to the slightest sound wondering if the person that he had come to meet would betray him. The thought pod had gone to Rodan first but it had then gone to another person whose help would be essential in getting his plan into effect.

"Did you really have to select such a place for a meeting? Would somewhere warmer and more comfortable been too much for your sense of drama?" A voice from behind him said and although the voice had changed since they had last met hundreds of years ago was still recognisable by that same smug sense of superiority as always.

"This is a secret meeting. I can hardly meet you in the Panopticon can I?" He asked exasperated turning to face the person he was speaking too. The man had now stepped out of the shadows allowing the Doctor to see him. He looked to be in his late fifties perhaps touching his early sixties. His dark grey hair was carefully groomed and he was wearing a surprisingly human fitted suit that would have not looked out of place in the window display of the finest tailors of Earth. It was made of dark grey silk with a red, blue and silver tie. The black smart shoes on his feet were shiny and clean despite the dirty conditions in the tunnel and he was leaning slightly on an ornate dark brown cane which had a lion's head carved intricately into the handle.

"Oh very well little brother if you feel it necessary." Irving Braxiatel said looking at his younger brother with an indulgent smile. "By the way mother and sister send their love. Now brother I assume that we should not let time make buggers of us all and get down to business." He then waited patiently for his brother to get on with whatever was bothering him so much that he would come to him for help. The Doctor had his pride and it had always been rubbed in his face by their father that Irving had been better than him. As children he had scored far better at the academy scoring firsts in most subjects and handling people with more ease than his restless brother although two features they shared in common was a greater interest in the wider universe and not wanting to conform to the norms around them although where the Doctor had become so frustrated that he had stolen a Tardis and fled Gallifrey with his own granddaughter which Irving had secretly allowed to happen hiding it from the authorities until the pair were long gone, Irving had been more subtle. He had managed to arrange for himself a post as unofficial ambassador for Gallifrey to the rest of the universe. With his own Tardis he too had travelled although he was not the meddlesome adventurer his brother was he had still built one of the largest and most extensive art collections in all of time and space.

"Well given how many 'friends' you have." The Doctor said with distain as he mentioned the various 'friendships' Irving had cultivated with members of high Timelord society. "I know that you know about the Ultimate Sanction." Irving replied without pause or viable reaction.

"Of course brother. However insane the plan might be the High Council are quite proud of it so they tell everyone they can whenever they get the chance. Just be glad brother that Rodan, the fair lady Romana, Leela and myself managed to sabotage the process for the meanwhile hence why we are all still here. I take it you have a plan to prevent it properly?" Irving asked with a slight smile. He was enormously proud of his brother's accomplishments although his own pride would never let him tell his younger brother that.

"Yes but I need to see the War Council and I need to get into the Omega Arsenal." The Doctor told his brother who kept smiling before telling him unperturbed.

"Well you do not ask for much do you? Still it is important so consider it done." He said making his little brother sweat for a moment and then he asked a random question breaking the tension. "So how is the new Regeneration cycle working out? I acquired it myself. To hear your little human friend speak that passionately you must have been in quite a situation when I sent it."

The Doctor was struck momentarily speechless, so it was Irving that had sent him the new regeneration cycle that had saved not only his life but coincidentally all the lives of the surviving people on Trenzalore. He had always been unsure of his Brother Irving's intentions, he was too good at hiding what he was thinking and what his motivations were for anyone to truly know what he was planning and why. Irving meanwhile stepped aside and gestured down the tunnel with his cane and the Doctor gathering his own pride started walking down the tunnel with Irving at his side. Irving decided to make some conversation as they moved to pass the time.

"While I set up your meeting with the War Council there are a few other people that you should meet and while we walk brother you can tell me about the quite delectable girl you have travelling with you now."

The Doctor's protective hackles immediately rose and he said sharply to Irving. "Hands off."

"Oh very well brother." Irving said putting his hands in the air in mock surrender.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

In the tribe's campsite the crew found themselves being drawn into village life very quickly. Matt, Greer, Varro and some of the other men joined the men of the tribe as they went out to hunt. Matt looked at the bow and arrows that he was given with some confusion as to what to do with them as did many of the other humans who were used to slightly more sophisticated weapons than these. Matt was about to ask Ablif for some pointers in how to use the old style weapon when a huge bear like creature but with tusks and antlers came lumbering its way across the dunes in front of them. Seeing the size of the creature Greer turned to Ablif and asked.

"That is one ugly looking bear. How are we supposed to take that thing down?" Ablif looked at the humans with a smile, feeling the thrill of the hunt and also secretly enjoying the awkwardness of the humans and told them with some quiet laughter as they watched the bear creature walk past.

"With the right hit to its neck area." Ablif said about to demonstrate when Varro with practiced ease that he had hidden to surprise them all raised the bow and took only a second to adjust his aim before firing and hitting the beast right in the vulnerable spot. The creature had only enough time to let out a small moan before collapsing to the floor dead. Varro relaxed his grip on the bow and looked around to see the amazed faces of the people around him.

Back at the camp Brody, Volker, Hunter Riley and some of the other men where helping put up the new tents. Brody and Volker were just driving the support poles into the ground and securing them in place before getting up on a primitive but surprisingly study ladder and using rough nails and a hammer to put the other support beams in place. When he was finished with this Hunter Riley with Peter's help dragged the heavy canvas over the wooden frame.

Vanessa found herself sparring with Presta who was eager to see Earth styles of unarmed combat and was fascinated with the marine core styles that were all integrated into the martial arts training program.

Camille found herself sitting with Romana sipping some kind of tea that apparently was native to this world. It was rather too sweet for Camille's tastes but she sipped it without complaint afraid of upsetting the older woman. Romana smiled at Camille and asked to start some conversation.

"Well my dear it has been some time since I spoke to someone from Earth. How is that special little planet of yours?" Camille was surprised at the question and endeavoured to answer it before asking one of her own.

"It is going fine. So you have been to Earth then?" She asked hoping to establish some kind of common ground with this time lady. Romana smiled before answering.

"When I was much younger I travelled with the Doctor. Earth was his favourite planet even back then so travelling with him I saw a lot of it. I particularly remember Paris, the feel, the smell, the taste of the city. Perhaps my favourite time there." She told Camille with a faraway look in her eyes. Camille feeling she now had something she could speak to this woman about on an even level then said.

"It is lovely there in the spring but I always preferred to go to Rome or Florence myself. The history of those cities and the culture fascinated me no matter how many times I heard it."

Romana's eyes lit up now she had someone to speak to who knew what she was talking about. Launching into the discussion with fresh vigour she asked her.

"Did you ever see Shanghai? When I was there in the 1930s it was a fascinating place. Has it changed much since then?"

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

In the Capital the Doctor was waiting impatiently for Irving to arrange his meeting with the War Council and sat in the living room of Irving's rather impressing home. Decorated with wooden panels it was nearly an exact replica of an Edwardian manor. Some the vast art collection that Irving had acquired over the years were put around the walls and while the Doctor enjoyed the view he was eager to get going and get the rest of his plan underway. He was about to start building a house of playing cards again for the ninth time when the door opened and the Doctor leapt to his feet thinking that it was Irving but instead of his annoyingly smug brother it was a woman. She was younger than him at least in this particular incarnation, he could feel she was a time lady the moment she entered the room. She looked to be in her early thirties, her hair was a sleek dark brown bob and her dress was a rich shade of scarlet and before the Doctor could ask who the woman was she flung herself at him and wrapped him in a fierce hug.

"No I'm against the hugging." The Doctor protested trying to break her surprisingly strong grip but he then caught sight of the woman's face and her next word shocked him.

"Grandfather!"

"Susan!" He managed to choke out in surprise which was quickly replaced with elation at her being alive. Well he thought to himself the hits kept on coming today and he now eagerly returned the hug.

"Well you could look a little happier to see me." Susan said with a pout as she let her grandfather go and stepped back so they could talk properly. She had regenerated since they last met when he had been in his eighth incarnation during the 2nd Dalek Invasion of Earth and on the tragic day that they had both suffered great loss; her son Alex and two of his companions Lucy and Tamsin. They had both been gutted by the loss of Alex and his own tragedy was worst at the dead of his companions. After that he had been certain that she would never want to see him again but it seemed that he had thought wrong.

"I' am." The Doctor managed to say and a small smile appeared on his face at the sight of someone that he had cared about more than anything in the universe before asking her. "How did you get here?"

"Great-uncle Irving brought me." Susan explained looking a little better at the smile. "He was on Earth after the invasion looking for a few pieces to add to his collection when he found me. I was a mess after…after Alex died." She said her eyes becoming nearly tearful as she thought about her treasured boy. "I did not handle it very well, I was a near insane wreck when he found me. He sobered me up and brought me home. They made me undergo some therapy until they were satisfied that I was not going to try and end myself." She stopped for a moment as her thoughts briefly touched on that dark time when she had been nearly ready to kill herself permanently but Irving had stopped her and made her get help. "He put me back in the Academy so I could finish my education and then he even found me a man." She said with some humour. The man Irving had found for her was a widow himself who had lost his wife to some power game that was being played out by some of the bigger houses here on Gallifrey. Neither wanted love but rather companionship and their marriage had been more about friendship and satisfying mutual urges until she had accidentally become pregnant one day. Raising a family had been something she had never wanted to do again after losing the one she had had on Earth but her second chance at a family had given her a sense of enjoyment in life again. Bringing children into the world, raising them being there for all the trials and disappointments as well as all the joy had reminded her of all of the good moments that her grief had blocked out.

"A new family." The Doctor said surprised but inside he was filling up with guilt. He had been so caught up in his own loss that he had left rather than staying to try and help Susan when she had needed him most and feeling worse that he brother had been the one to fix his mistake. Susan sat down on the sofa and as he sat next to her she told him all about them.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

In the wastelands around the tribe's camp Leela was bringing back the animal that she had killed for dinner tonight. They needed more as there was more mouths to feed but she discovered to her dismay and frustration that the bear like creature was far too heavy for her to drag on her own. She tugged on the rope that she had tied around it but as hard as she pulled it was barely moving even across the sand.

"Need any help?" A voice said from her side and Leela with knife in hand looked over to see the brunette that the Doctor apparently travelled with now standing there. She was shorter than Leela who doubted very highly that this girl had what it takes to be a warrior. Gritting her teeth Leela said quickly.

"I'm fine thank you." It did not phase the girl and Leela then proceeded to try again at dragging the beast only to hurt her hands and back and swallowing her pride Leela asked through gritted teeth. "Please."

Clara smiled and took hold of the ropes herself and began pulling with Leela. Together they managed to start moving the heavy creature and through the tiring physical activity Clara asked.

"So which Doctor did you travel with?" Her breathing was laboured with the hard activity she was doing. Leela wondered why she was asking the question but answered anyway.

"His fourth, what about you?"

"Eleventh and Twelfth." Clara said back and asked. "What was the fourth Doctor like?"

"He was fun." Leela said not really sure how to describe the Doctor at that point in his life. "He wore a long scarf and he used to carry around a bunch of these things called jelly babies. He was brilliant and he tried to educate me." Clara smiled despite the pain in her hands from the rough rope before telling Leela.

"Sounds a lot like mine except for the scarf and the jelly babies."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

In the camp Rodan was playing with some of the younger children, a game of tag that she was letting them win. Pretending to catch them only to let them escape at the last moment making them giggle at her acting like a monster. She ended the game when the children's mothers called them back to their tents and watched them go with a smile. She loved it when she managed to sneak out here, it was so much fun to play with the children and cast off the stuffy air that filled the city. She might have been frightened when she had first come out here with Leela in her first incarnation but she had learned to not be scared anymore even to love the outside world. She looked around and saw one of the humans that the Doctor had brought with him watching her. She had picked up on her when the game had still been on and saw the distant look on her face. Walking over to the red haired woman she asked.

"Claire isn't it? Are you alright?" Rodan asked with concern. Claire's eyes focused on her as she came out of her thoughts and said.

"Sorry I was just thinking about my daughters back on Earth. I just hope the Doctor sends me back to them before they grow up without me." Claire said as tears started falling from her eyes and her despair started coming to the surface. The Doctor's promise to get them all home had been what kept her going ever since they got to this planet. She had thought that when they finally made it to the Capital then that would be it and she would be going home to her girls only to be arrested by their rulers and forced to hide out here in the desert. Rodan seeing her distress put her arms around Claire who finally started letting the tears that she had been suppressing since they had first arrived on Gallifrey run free. She was terrified that when she finally got home that they would be grown women or worse she never got back and missed their entire lives leaving them with questions as to why she had gone away and if she had never loved them. Her fears getting on top of her Rodan stroked her back and let her cry.

"The Doctor will get you home and so they never knew you were gone." Rodan reassured her. "We Timelords can bend time if we need too. You can be back on Earth nearly the same moment you left if you want. And if the Doctor does not I will." She kept on comforting Claire who finally after twenty minutes seemed to run out of tears.

Claire felt slightly better after letting all the feeling that she had been bottling up out and the reassurance from Rodan and she finally managed a small smile before breaking Rodan's hold on her gently. Rodan instantly smiled herself and said with her normal good nature.

"Now that is better, now let's go and have some fun." Claire laughed at the child-like smile on Rodan's face but they were broken when Camille came running out of the tent where she had been taking tea with Romana looking desperate.

"Romana has collapsed." Both Claire and Rodan became serious and got to their feet before rushing over to the tent and saw that the older woman had indeed fallen still. Rodan and Claire moved to her side and held her wrists only to feel no pulse.

"She is dead isn't she?" Camille said as neither woman commented but Claire only asked one question.

"What incarnation was she on?"

"Her third." Rodan said looking serious and they both suddenly felt a heat started to rapidly build up in the hands of the supposedly dead woman and quickly let them go before stepping back away from her body. Seeing Camille was about to go and see what had them so cautious Claire grabbed her arm gently and pulled her away from the body.

"What incarnation? What are you two doing?" Camille asked not really understanding what was going on. Rodan tried to explain.

"Timelords have this special ability, when we die we can do this trick that allows us to cheat death. We call it regeneration and I think Romana is about ready to pop."

"What?" Camille asked confused as to what she meant when Romana's supposedly dead body was engulfed in a bright golden light that radiated out from her. The three women present desperately shielded their eyes from its intense glare. There was a sound like rushing water as the energy poured out of Romana till only moments after it started it stopped. The three on looking women all turned back in time to see a completely new woman lying where Romana had been only moments before. The new woman suddenly woke and full of energy she leapt to her feet and began speaking with an almost manic energy and rushing over to the mirror.

"Oh hello there. I love this this, it feels so fresh and new. All that boring stuff that was here in my head before gone so finally I can have some fun at long last." She studied her new appearance. "Oh the hair is great." She said running the long blonde locks through her fingers before moving on to the rest of her appearance. "Nice nose, good lips, not too tall only about five foot five. Eyes…oh I have never had this colour brown before." Then she quickly turned around and asked the dazed people behind her. "What do you think?"

"It is good." Rodan said honestly. There was one common thread in all of Romana's incarnations so far in that they were all great beauties. Rodan had gone to the Academy with Romana and before that they had been friends as children which had not changed as they grew older so she had known her in every form that she had ever had.

"Only good? That does not sound like a good start." Romana said with a pout but Claire who was still in shock over seeing her first regeneration although she had known about the ability beforehand it was still amazing to see for yourself decided to say.

"No it is great. Just different to what was there before." Claire said and Romana pounced asking quickly.

"Different how? Different good? Different bad?"

"Just different." Camille said still completely lost as to what was going on. Rodan and Claire realised how overwhelmed Camille was feeling right now and Claire nodded to Rodan as a silent signal before leading the shell-shocked Camille out of the tent and sitting her down as she tried to explain what had just happened.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The Doctor after talking with Susan for nearly an hour regretfully parted company with her. He swore that he would speak to her again before he left Gallifrey but she had just given him a sad smile like she did not believe him. It hurt that his granddaughter had that little faith in him but given how many times he had let her down he could hardly blame her. Letting down the people that were closest to him seemed to be as constant companion for him as the Tardis was. But this time he resolved to himself as he entered the chamber it was going to be different.

With that in place he quietly and carefully walking into the most secure room in the Omega Arsenal. Once where all the most dangerous and forbidden weapons had been locked away until many of them had been deployed against the Daleks with only one exception the most powerful and dangerous of them all, The Moment. As the Doctor moved cautiously forward towards the box that looked so innocent sitting on its pedestal you would not believe it was the most devastating weapon in the universe he was surprised by a familiar voice whispering into his left ear.

"What are you looking for?" Jumping around, he confirmed who it was that had sneaked up on him. The Interface of the Moment once again resembling Bad Wolf or Rose Tyler he could never be sure which.

"You." He said simply and the curious lifelike projected looked at him with a bemused smile and told him with that strange smile of hers.

"I'm charmed but I assume that it is for more than easy going conversation." The Doctor then told her honestly although he knew that she had already found out what he wanted by reading his mind like she had before.

"I need your help again or the High Council will do far worse to the universe than I ever did by trying to destroy Gallifrey."

The Moment frowned for a while as she considered what he wanted her to do. She had already interfered once to save his human friends from the hands of the Daleks in Arcadia although he was unaware of it and she had her own reasons for doing it. Coming to her decision she fixed him with a gentle stare and told him.

"If I do what you want, there will be consequences for you." She warned him but he told her without compromise.

"If you think there is nothing I would sacrifice to save the universe then maybe you should take a look in my head again. Take what you want from me. All my regenerations, both my hearts there is nothing I would not be willing to give to save the universe. You know that." His eyes blazed with his nearly unbreakable will. The Moment stared at him and then grinned and told him.

"Well there will not be any need for that great a sacrifice Doctor, of course I will help you."

Feeling relieved the Doctor carefully took the Moment off its pedestal and turned to speak to the interface only to see that she had disappeared. He sighed before walking to the door where he discovered the timelord that had been called 'The General'. His tall body dressed in special body armour with cape and the other members of the War Council that surrounded him all stared at him with slight awe and perhaps fear given what had happened the last time they met.

"So" The Doctor said with complete seriousness. "Are you with me?" He asked.

The General looked at him with his piercing gaze as he assessed the Doctor who he had always held a low opinion of until he had managed to do what the General had thought impossible to do; save Gallifrey and all its inhabitants. Destroying the Daleks had been a bonus as far as he was concerned. The Doctor meanwhile knew that his plan really hinged on whether this man was going to do the right thing or not. The people he commanded and all the weight that the General's name carried were what was going to swing the whole operation and for second the Doctor feared that the General would do the exact opposite until the strong leader said six words that made him breathe a sigh of relief.

"To hell with the High Council."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

At dusk the village gathered for the feast at the end of the day. On the spits around the camp the slain animals roasted on the open fires that cooked them beautifully. The villagers all danced as the music from their primitive pipes and drums filled the air. The _Destiny_ crew watched as they leapt around energetically just letting themselves get lost in the moment. Then Alina surprised them all and got her feet to join in the dancing, swinging herself around with such abandon it made the disciplined woman they had met in the Death Zone seem a complete contradiction. Taking her lead most of the Russian soldiers all got to their feet to join the fun and they were swiftly joined by the rest of the American portion of the group. Claire and Vanessa swung each other around in a tight circle before spinning off into Varro and Rodan's arms who danced closely with them. The smiles on all their faces seemed a million miles away from how upset they had been about recent events. Letting themselves go and having some simple easy fun after the recent harsh realities that they had witnessed in Arcadia and Hope acted as a tonic to their troubled minds making them feel so much better they forgot to be worried. Clara was dancing with Ablif and Presta while TJ danced with her husband and Molly shared a dance with Lisa and Greer.

Romana it seemed was the life of the party throwing herself into the activities with wild abandon dancing a wild gymnastic style at the centre of all the fun. Eli was doing a strange energetic waltz or something along those lines with Ginn when he said with a slight smile to her quietly.

"I hope that when we do get back to Earth, we can still be friends. You know have moments like this." Eli had hated when the others had left _Destiny_ when they first got home to Earth. The people in his life meant a great deal to him and them leaving it for whatever reason was always hard. Having those who he was closest too back again with him made him feel like everything was going to be okay. They would get home, however long it took he had never lost faith that they would. This crew could do anything that they set their minds too. Time and again they had been faced with terrible odds and overcome them. This was no different. It had been a hell of journey that had pushed them all to their very limits but despite it all they had kept going and soon he hoped they would be going home.

While Eli was dancing away with Ginn, Matt and Chloe sat back down feeling hot and bothered from all the activity and collapsed down onto the rug where they had been lying. Taking a sip of the cool water they took a few steadying breaths before Chloe turned to Matt and said.

"I have never been to a party like this." Her eyes sparkling with joy as she took a long drink. Matt stared at her with a nervous smile. He always thought that she was beautiful even when she was at her worse but right now she appeared like a siren that would tempt sailors to their doom with her allure. Her skin was a light from the illumination provided by the large fires around them, her hair flowing freely dance her back and her eyes seemed to hypnotise him. Matt's hand went to his trouser pocket where he felt for the small box that he had bought at the trading post before they had been sent on this insane journey. It had been with him when the ship had been destroyed by the battle with the Daleks and their evacuation to this strange, terrifying but still incredible planet. All across Gallifrey he had carried it wondering if he should ever dare show Chloe what it contained. Finally he could wait no longer and he took the box out of his pocket and put it down behind him and Chloe. His girlfriend looked at him confused when she saw the rather elaborately decorated box and as he went to open it he asked her before his nerves went completely.

"Chloe Armstrong, I have been trying to find the words to ask this question for a long time so before I get anymore scared." He stopped and took a deep breath as a now concerned Chloe looked on as he opened the box revealing an ornate platinum ring with tiny diamonds around a carefully cut sapphire. "Will you marry me?"

The reaction was immediate as she froze hearing those words. Her mind was in shock and Matt looked on helpless feeling worse with each second that her surprised silence lasted. Finally what he had said sank in and Chloe blinked in surprise and she let him know the answer with actions rather than words. Grapping the scruff of his collar she pulled him into the most passionate kiss she could manage surprising Matt with just how much fire Chloe had. They nearly started making out there and then if they had not had to break the kiss to breathe. Their breathing really fast after the greatest kiss either of them had ever experienced Matt carefully took Chloe's hand and slipped the small ring on her finger before giving her another more gentle kiss.

Molly came over to sit by them and was about to find another mat to give them privacy when she saw the ring. Crying out in elation she broke them from their kiss and as Chloe and Matt got to their feet she rushed forward and gave her assistant a hug telling them congratulations. The sounds drew other members of crew over to see what the fuss was about and then saw the ring on Chloe's finger. Very soon the pair were swamped by all their friends offering them their best wishes.

"So when is the wedding?" Rush asked not particularly caring but he did in some corner of his heart that so many thought was like ice care about whether Chloe was happy. He felt responsible for the young woman after he had inadvertently put the idea in her father's head to sacrifice himself to save the rest of the crew. If it had been anyone else on that alien mothership when they had been attacked by the Nakai after him being stranded he might not have saved them. But he did like the girl admiring her spirit wondering if he and his late wife had managed to have children if he would have had a daughter like Chloe. He secretly liked that idea not that he would ever admit it.

"Why wait?" Nesbin asked coming over surprising them all. "If you two genuinely love each other then why not marry here and now? I will perform the ceremony if that would please you?" He suggested and to everyone's surprise Chloe spoke first.

"Yes if you would." She turned to the surprised Matt and told him in a voice full of emotion. "We could die tomorrow, fifty years from now whenever but I do not want to waste a single moment more waiting." Matt nodded with a face full of emotion. His sister Kathy jumped in and told them.

"You have more than enough witnesses. So let's get this party on the road."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Chloe and Matt suddenly found themselves in the process of rush organising a wedding. Since Nesbin was carrying out the ceremony they did not have to worry about that or a venue since it would be happening here in the village. But they had only minutes as Nesbin got ready to find get the rest of the arrangements in order. Matt had always thought that when he and Chloe had their wedding that it would be on either _Destiny_ or a quiet church on Earth and at either venue they would be surrounded by their friends. Getting married on an alien world heaven only knows how far away from home that was something they had never imagined. But all their mutual friends were here with them in this strange place and when he really thought about it, Matt did not care a single jot about where or how he and Chloe finally took the biggest step in their relationship as long as they were together and that Chloe was as happy as she could be. The memory of their sort of wedding in the dream town of Cloverdale was still fresh in his mind and he hoped that it would go smoothly this time.

Returning to the wedding arrangements he looked around and saw the men that he wanted as his best man and the other groomsmen.

"Greer." He said to the man that had become the firmest friend that Matt had ever had. "Would you be my best man?"

Greer looked intense at the request knowing that it was a true sign of friendship from Matthew Scott to ask you to be the Best Man at his wedding and he told him.

"I would be honoured." Matt smiled in relief before giving him a manly hug. They quickly separated before it got weird and he handed Greer the box that now had the ring back in it for the ceremony. Turning to Eli and General Young he asked them earnestly if they would be his other groomsmen.

"That would be fine." Young said smiling at the sudden joy the man that he regarded as his protégé was experiencing. While his own marriage to his first wife had had problems from the start for a variety of reasons, his marriage to TJ was something that gave him the best feeling the morning, in the middle of the day and last thing at night as well as all the time in-between. He would not trade that for anything that the universe could offer. He was also happy for Chloe, the young brunette that had become something of a daughter figure to him since the death of her father and he had sworn to try and keep her safe. Something that he had not done the best job at but regardless he was happy for them both to find that joy that came with such a connection they shared even in a place like this.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Chloe meanwhile was being dragged off to a tent by Romana and she still could not wrap her head around how the bouncy blonde that was pulling her firmly towards the tent was the same woman that only this morning had been an old woman with grey hair and with such quiet dignity and grace. She called out before being dragged into the tent.

"TJ, Ginn, Claire, Vanessa could I have word?" The four indicated women rushed over and were about to enter the tent when Romana appeared at the entrance and told them sternly.

"Wait for the surprise. You can talk to her from here." She insisted and disappeared back into the tent. Vanessa was about to ignore Romana and enter the tent anyway till a hand emerged through the flap and stopped her in her tracks. Abandoning the attempt for now the four women stood back and TJ asked.

"Chloe are you alright?" Their response was a hurried one.

"Yes. Ouch that hurt." Chloe said before cracking on regardless to what Romana was doing to her at that moment while the rest of the _Destiny_ crew and the villagers were setting up some kind of altar for the wedding. "I know it is really short notice but TJ would you be my Maiden of Honour?" Chloe asked the woman that had taught her all she knew of medicine and given her a purpose when she was feeling her most useless, there was no one else Chloe would want more at her side when she tied the knot. TJ herself felt incredibly honoured that Chloe would think of her for such an honour.

"I would be delighted." TJ said genuinely touched and not wanting the others to feel left out Chloe quickly asked.

"Would you be my bridesmaids?" She asked the other three women present who all said with big smiles.

"Yes."

"Great." Chloe said as she emerged from the tent looking incredible. They were all struck speechless by how much Romana had managed to do it just minutes. Chloe's hair was styled into an elaborate ponytail running down and over her left shoulder with silver brooch at the end. Her face had makeup artfully applied that she could easily have been a model on a catwalk but the most dramatic change was that she had now changed into a white silken robe that Romana had taken from her own wardrobe that looked so elegant it took their breath away. It was like a wedding dress teamed with silver sandals.

"Chloe." Claire said in wonder. "You look amazing."

"Thank you." Chloe said feeling very self-conscious but when she had seen herself in the mirror she could not deny that she would have hoped for this look if her wedding was being held on Earth any day.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

As the crowd sat in a big circle around the centre of the camp so they could all see the Chief stood in front of a large flaming bowl on a pedestal. Matt was already standing in place with his chosen men while he waited for Chloe catching the eyes of all those who were watching. He saw his own crewmates all look back with encouraging smiles as his nerves stretched further with every moment this went on. On the outer most part of the onlookers Rush sat impatiently waiting to start so he could get out of the uncomfortable kneeling position he had had to get into so that he could see when Ginn came up and told him before returning to the tent where Chloe was getting ready.

"Chloe wants to see you."

Surprised at the request he nonetheless got up grateful to be out of that uncomfortable position he got up and headed over to the tent where he was astonished at the amazingly quick transition that had somehow had been achieved in such a short space of time. He had never seen Chloe more beautiful and when he reached her he said so.

"You look incredible." Chloe gave him an unsteady smile still feeling those pre-wedding anxieties. She then asked him quickly before her worries got the better of her.

"Thank you but would you be willing to give me away?" Rush was astounded at the request never having seen it coming. Thinking he was going to refuse Chloe quickly said "Well maybe someone else." But Rush interrupted her.

"I would be honoured." So he offered her his arm and she took it with a nervous smile before they started walking towards the altar. As they appeared in the circle some of the tribesmen started playing an upbeat melody that everyone assumed was their version of the wedding march. Seeing Chloe approach took everyone's breath away, Matt himself wondered from the moment that he first saw her till the second she gently gripped his hand when she and Rush who was playing the father of the bride reached the altar. Riley was watching intently with a camera that he had gotten off one of the Russian members of their crew snapping away pictures.

At the altar Nesbin started the ceremony.

"Today is a day that marks a change in the lives of Matthew and Chloe. Today they have chosen to unify themselves together for all their days as husband and wife." He said taking a breath before continuing. "It is the most important decision that a man and woman can reach to share their every moment, their every breath. Before they make this sacred vow does anyone here have cause to object or will they forever keep their silence." No one spoke so Nesbin carried on turning to Matt first.

"Matthew will you honour Chloe, spend your every moment with her, grow old with her and most importantly swear that you will love her till the end of time?" He asked, Matt did not even hesitate as he stared into Chloe's eyes.

"I swear." Nesbin then turned to Chloe.

"Chloe will you honour Matthew, will you spend every moment with him, grow old with him and most importantly swear that you will love him till the end of time?" Chloe staring back into Matt's eye did not hesitate either.

"I swear."

"Then place the symbol of your unity upon Chloe's finger Matthew." Nesbin told them both and Matt turned to Greer who handed him the ring and Matt with his hand almost shaking in nerves slipped the ring onto Chloe's finger. Nesbin then said with a big smile.

"Then I pronounce you man and wife, you may kiss the bride."

With that Matt and Chloe gently lent forward till they could meet in a loving kiss and all around the camp the onlookers all got to their feet and started cheering.

But it was short lived as suddenly the sky was filled with a roar as some kind of hovering vehicle appeared quickly firing energy weapons at the camp hitting several tents and sending everyone running for cover. As it reached the camp and hovered over the site everyone tried to run only for four beams of light to hit Claire, Clara, Vanessa and Romana. The four women suddenly found themselves being pulled off the ground like someone had attached them to a hook and was hauling them upward. They had little time to react as they were soon pulled into the hovering ship which suddenly pulled away at top speed towards the Capital. Looking at the retreating ship General Young and Camille Wray's eyes tensed in anger.

"Get our people together." General Young told her. "We are going to get our friends back."

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The four women that had been taken from the tribe's camp all found themselves back in the Capital locked in a small cell by force fields but unlike before they were not suspended.

"So what do you think they want with us this time?" Vanessa asked as they all sat down inside their small cell. Romana smiled as if they did not have a care in the world and told them.

"Probably to find out what the Doctor's plan is."

"The irony of that is that we do not know." Clara said with dismay. Everything had been going so well too she thought annoyed. Interrupting Matt and Chloe's wedding had been unforgivable as far as she was concerned.

"Well why don't we try and think of a way to escape at least it will pass the time." Claire suggested and Romana suddenly leapt to her feet and said in an excited voice.

"Yes I could lure a guard in here while you set a trip wire up made from strands of clothing and then knock him out the moment he falls. Then we steal his clothes, then we find more guards and steal their clothes then smuggle ourselves out of the city." Her breathing quick the other three women present just stared until Claire said seeing a guard coming up the corridor she said simply.

"Or we could do this." With a quick jerk of her hand the guard suddenly found himself gripped tight in her telekinesis. Forcing his arms to stretch out forward the guard briefly got to experience flying as he was cast across the room and her face tensing as she concentrating the guards fingers slowly moved over the panel like he was a puppet on Claire's strings. The force field quickly dropped and Claire released her telekinesis grip on the guard while Vanessa quickly moved out of the cell and knocked the guard unconscious before he recovered. The three other women all exited the cell and Vanessa took a pair of strange cuffs off the guard's belt and secured his wrists.

"Well that was easy." Clara said casually while she was secretly amazed at how Claire had freed them so quickly from the cell.

"Powers of an Ancient Clara." Claire said with a smile. "Both me and Vanessa can do that and if the Doctor does not find a way to stop the virus that is running around your bloodstream then you will probably develop these powers too."

"Really?" Clara asked intrigued thinking that due to all the situations that she and the Doctor got into powers like that would come in handy.

"I did not know you were all Ancients." Romana said looking a good deal more calm and level headed than she had a moment before when she had suggested that rather elaborate plan to escape. She felt rather embarrassed at how over the top her plan had been so she told them. "I think I have some regeneration shock it will pass soon enough. This version of me just seems to be so energetic it is hard to contain." She assured them.

Nodding the non-timelords in the room went over to the storage locker and took out their gear which had been stripped from them. Once ready they started to make their way down the corridor and out of the prison hoping that they might be able to find some transport that could get them out of the city before their escape was discovered.

They were nearing some kind of large courtyard when Romana noticed something.

"We are right underneath the High Council Chamber." She told them looking up at the ceiling above her. Not wanting to think about how close they were to the people that wanted to lock them up in the first place they quickly made their way to the exit on the other side when they were ambushed by their own people!

"Guys you are okay." Eli said running forward and giving Claire and hug that surprised the redhead.

"Nice to see you too Eli." She said while looking around to not only see her own ship mates and their new Russian members but also the Tribe's people.

"Did they hurt you?" Molly said coming forward to check them over when Vanessa assured them.

"We are fine, now maybe we should get out of here? The High Council is literally right above our heads and I would rather not meet them."

Then a loud echoing voice sounded from all around them.

"I well believe that it is far too late for you to avoid it ape descendant." The arrogance in the tone was nearly like a stink in the air making them all recoil before they were surrounded in a blue light and then found themselves in an entirely different place. It was a huge room that must have risen nearly five hundred feet into the air and gone out as far as three football pitches in any direction width ways. It was dark around them for a moment but they started rising on a huge platform. Everyone looked around them alarmed as they went higher and higher into the air. While they rose Claire looked around and saw that Rodan and Romana looked for the first time since she had met them scared. Leela too looked very uncomfortable however she tried to hide it. Wondering what they were likely to face Claire took her weapon out of its holster and held it tight. Suddenly when they had risen two hundred feet or so they could see the platforms above them where men in those strange robes and collars looking down on them like they were exhibits in a zoo. The scorn on their faces was plain enough to see even if she was not feeling it with her telepathy. She regarded the men above them with distain. This was what the Doctor had been weary of, over the course of their journey across Gallifrey they had met many of the Timelords and none of them had been as dangerous as this. Over privileged fools that were centuries old living in a world where their will was king. Who had the power to exercise every whim and frequently did so regardless of the cost to others. The only people that mattered were the High Council and want they said went. In power for centuries and were dangerously out of touch with reality and proud of it. Now she knew why the Doctor had been so keen to leave Gallifrey.

"So this is the where the Timelords have ended up is it?" Romana asked now with a dark look in her eyes that was a complete surprised after they had all seen the energetic young woman she had been earlier. "The writing was on the wall for so long before I was born that it beggars belief that we have managed to survive this long."

"Lady Romana." The same voice from before said and a tall man with short dark hair and regal looking scarlet and orange robes decorated with gold stepped forward revealing himself as the speaker. He had a tall golden staff in his hand and his mind was almost frightening to look at. It was devoid of any conscience, no guilt or humility but an intelligence and strength of will that was like staring into the heart of a sun burning so brightly that it would destroy you if you got too close. Pulling herself back slightly in fear Claire shook herself and stood up taller as the man continued to speak to Roman who stared back with disgust radiating from every pore.

"You should remember your place, this is the High Council of Timelords. You are nothing merely a renegade that failed in her duty to political office when she might have risen above her own failings as a timelord." He said with contempt but Romana answered back.

"At least I tried to change the future of Gallifrey for the better. To make us grow as a people. What have you done apart from bring us all to brink of destruction with your lack of understanding the enemy we face, the arrogance and selfishness that guides your every action and foolish belief that only you deserve to decide the fate of the universe." Romana was almost shouting but then Camille asked nervously.

"What does she mean? Decide the fate of the universe?" Rassilon who had been burning with rage at Romana's defiance then smirked again ignoring Romana to answer Camille's question.

"The High Council has decided that this universe has become to corrupt and chaotic to survive. So we will initiate the Ultimate Sanction. We will create a paradox so severe that it will tear the rip the whole of space and time apart tearing the time vortex open. The whole of reality will dissolve and we Timelords will discard these limited bodies to become creatures of pure consciousness alone. No time, no space, no cause and effect it will be a glorious ascension."

"You are insane!" Claire screamed out at him absolutely horrified at the scenario that they were talking about. "Destroying the whole of reality, all of creation just so you can ascend! The Alteran race could do that without ripping the whole of universe to shreds. If anything in the universe is corrupt enough to deserve destruction it is you Rassilon."

Everyone who could even have the vaguest clue about what the High Council had been planning was scared too. Claire was scared out of her wits as well but thankfully she was too angry to realise that she was scared. This was what the warning she had received had been trying to tell her about before the message had been decoded. She could only hope that some way, somehow they could stop this madness before it went any further.

Rassilon was about to answer back when suddenly the platform that the _Destiny_ crew and their allies were standing on expanded outwards to form a complete floor across the room. Everyone was surprised but then a familiar voice sounded at the side.

"Now you know Clara why I was prepared to destroy Gallifrey." Everyone in the room wiped around to see the Doctor standing there looking fearsome as he eyes met Rassilon whose nose and eyes flared with anger as he said.

"Lord Doctor." He said with enormous disgust. "You turn up like an annoying bug that simply fails to die."

"And you are a monster and a relic that should have passed on millions of years ago." The Doctor said back with equal disgust in his voice. No one really noticed the bag in his hands except for Romana, Leela and Rodan.

"I created the Timelords!" Rassilon cried out the rest of the High Council looking highly offended at the Doctor's comment.

"You played a part in it. Omega and the other did just as much work as you perhaps more and you have merely take credit for their work. Either way you have only caused harm since you were reawakened but it ends here today. Now that I have your compete attention." The Doctor said to the gathered High Council. "Anyone who has the decency and the courage to stand against this insanity come forward now. You know in your hearts that it is wrong now please stand with me for the sake all life and time across the universe I beg you. Stand with me."

His impassioned speech was met with silence that sent the Doctor and his allies' hearts falling until one of the platforms on which the High Council was floating dropped quietly down onto the floor and an old woman with dark grey hair came walking towards them. The Doctor's eyes softened as she came close and when she came up to his side she gently took his hand and squeezed it before letting go and standing at his side. Everyone looked on wondering who the woman was but neither she nor the Doctor explained. Another Timelord seemingly bolstered by the fact that he was not alone in his revulsion of the plan stepped off his floating pad once it had reached the floor and walked over to the Doctor. His hair was a shade of silver and his face marked with age but his eyes were still blazing with a strong will.

"Gomer." The Doctor said taking the old man's hand firmly in his and shaking it. They were old friends and one that the Doctor was very glad to have on his side.

"It is good to see you too Doctor." Gomer said with a warm smile that reached his ear. The first time in a long time that had happened he thought to himself privately as he stood beside the Doctor too. He hoped that with two people willing to try and resist Rassilon more might come forward but the rest stayed where they were; either because they believed in Rassilon and his plan or because they were too cowardly to argue against it. He shook his head before turning back to Rassilon.

"I will not try and reason with you. I know how lost you are too madness and your own vanity so I will tell you what I am going to do. I will stop you and put you were you can do no harm."

Everyone even the Doctor's allies looked on unsure of what he could mean to do. Clara smiled so she thought to herself he did have a plan and if she knew the Doctor as well as she hoped she did it was going to be amazing so she was really surprised when he pulled a strange gizmo out of bag that he had been carrying. It was very much a lash up with strange bits and pieces from what looked like several pieces of equipment. At its centre was a strange wooden box that seemed to have a lot of clockwork like parts moving slowly inside.

"And what is that supposed to be?" One of the bolder High Council members said but Rassilon then saw the box at its centre and looked afraid for the first time since they had met him and he quickly called out.

"Guards! Defend the room." He yelled and with that the Chancellery guard began storming into the room. Seeing this the Doctor's allies all charged forward to meet them with whatever weapons that they had. The tribe's people let loose with their arrows, the people from Earth started shooting with their guns and salvaged energy weapons and the rest merely used whatever they had.

"More guards!" Rassilon shouted as the two sides met exchanging fire only for the unprepared guards to struggle against the battle-hardened soldiers of Earth and the tough Tribes' people who had survived in the wasteland for most of their lives. The Doctor however despite meaning to say something was interrupted by someone else.

"My men are seizing control of the rest of the guard posts in the city." The General stepped out of the shadows with the rest of the War Council, Irving Braxiatel and the Doctor's granddaughter Susan. Seeing the War Council turn against him was a huge blow to Rassilon as well as to the rest of the High Council. True they had never seen eye to eye but never had they imagined that the General and his people would turn on them, they arrogantly believed that they would never have the nerve. Worst the General's men had fought in this war since the beginning at his side, they knew the General and they trusted him enough to join him in this revolt and they had the element of surprise. And the final piece of icing on the cake was that while their armour remained clean and they were good at standing around looking important that was all the Chancellery guard were good for these days. Anyone who had any real skill as soldier had transferred over to the General's army and that lack of skill or experience in fighting meant the unprepared guards were being easily overwhelmed and pushed back by the forces that the Doctor had rallied against them. While Rassilon and the High Council were distracted by the battle that was being waged only feet away and elsewhere all over the Capital, the Doctor with the makeshift device in hand turns it on and aims in at the High Council.

A blue energy field enveloped the High Council and Rassilon who immediately started channelling their own mental energy against it. As powerful as the Moment was the Doctor could feel them pushing hard against the field. He concentrated his own energy but against the combined power of the High Council it was insignificant let alone Rassilon. Romana who had just sealed the door shut to stop anymore soldiers saw what was happening, she quickly shouted to everyone who were just finishing up the defeated guards.

"Everybody send your mental energy to the Doctor now!" Closing her eyes to do so, Rodan and the other Timelords present all did the same leaving the humans and two Ancients in the room confused at what to do so Leela who had learned a few things living here explained to them.

"Think Doctor, what he means to you give him every bit of support you can muster."

Nodding with some hesitation the assembled group closed their eyes and focused as they were told without really understanding what they were doing but whatever it was it seemed to be working as the field the Doctor was creating through the device strengthened but it was still being pressed too hard by the High Council. They felt it start to breach and for a moment they all began to feel a terrible pain in their heads as the pressure mounted. If they lost the field then the High Council could overwhelmed them all with sheer mental power Rassilon had stopped actively helping since the High Council seemed able to do it on their own so why waste his own energy. The High Council may only number a hundred or so but these were Timelords with centuries behind them so their combined mental power was stronger than the short lived humans and the few Timelords on the Doctor's side by weight of time. However just when they thought that all hope was lost the field began to strengthen as a huge new mental surge of energy started flowing into the Doctor's machine. The Doctor could not understand where it was coming from till he felt something familiar amongst the additional power.

"Drax." He said with a smile, his old friend must have rallied all the people of the town called Hope that they had passed through on their way here. He and the ordinary citizens with all their mental power adding their weight to the battle made it far more even but it was not just them. In Arcadia the Soldier must have rallied the survivors of the city because an even greater surge was coming from the second city of Gallifrey.

While the High Council was older than most timelords they were by majority weak in the will department and not used to having their power challenged. On the other hand the people in Hope, in Arcadia and indeed in this room were younger by large but together they numbered in the thousands and they had all been hardened by the experiences that they had gone through in either the war or other trials that they had suffered through so when all that was put together the people fighting for the Doctor however unorganised and different they might be were more powerful than the High Council. Seeing the battle starting to turn Rassilon began looking concerned and was about to re-join the battle which could well have made things far harder for the Doctor. For moment the Doctor and Rassilon locked glances but before the supposed founder of the Timelords could add his mental weight to the battle he felt a sharp pain in his front before he seemed to go into a catatonic state. The Doctor looked as saw a familiar looking thorn protruding from Rassilon's chest. He turned to Leela who was still holding a dart pipe in her hands and she told him with a slight regret.

"My very last one."

"I should shout at you for that." The Doctor said remembering how hard his fourth incarnation had tried to get her to give up the terrible things but apparently he had not succeeded completely but even now he could not deny that the single Janis thorn Leela had fired might have well saved the universe. "But you have probably just saved the universe." He told his amazed former companion before he renewed his mental attack. The High Council were in shock over the defeat of their leader by a mere savage ape descendant and the momentarily distraction proved vital as the Doctor was able to focus the energy enough to complete the field. The field's light grew brighter till it pulsed a bright blue before disappearing completely. When everyone looked up they saw to their great surprise that the High Council and more importantly Rassilon had disappeared.

"What happened?" TJ asked not understanding so the Doctor explained sounding slightly remorseful about what he had had to do.

"I used the Moment to open a fissure back into the Time War and banished the High Council and Rassilon there were finally they can do no more harm." It would be absolute hell for the High Council and Rassilon assuming he survived the poisoning. No way out for them if they ever changed but he had done his best to give them a chance and they had ignored it. Finally he thought relieved, the universe was safe. He carefully put the machine in his arms down before turning around to see Clara standing there with a big smile on her face before she leapt into his arms.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

 _Five days later…_

"And there they go." Irving said as he and the rest of the War Council used their mental power combined with the equipment that had so far been hoarded by the High Council to wipe away the Dalek ships that had crashed around the city.

"Perhaps but there is still much to do before we can rest." Rodan said seriously. Gallifrey was going to hurting for a long time she thought to herself. The planet had been badly scarred and its people traumatised. So many dead and others who would carry the horrors that they had seen for the rest of their lives all of them. It was going to be a long while till things got running properly again certainly till they had even a semblance of the lives they had had before the war.

"Yes and more than that afterwards." The Doctor said and turned to the General who was the new leader of Gallifrey as he had turned down the job again. He had never had the desire to lead Gallifrey and even after being away and seeing it burn he had no desire to lead it now. The General was more than up to the task of getting this planet back on its feet now that they were finally free of the High Council and their plans. "This planet has stagnated badly not just in terms of scientific progress. Little change has happened in thousands of years in social areas, physically and politically we need to push forward again." He said passionately hoping that maybe his people might finally start to push forward again but the General held up his hand to stop his little speech.

"Many of the same things occurred to me during the war. Doctor making sure Gallifrey heals is my first objective, the second is to ensure that this kind of thing never happens again." The General assured him. The Doctor then said sternly.

"Just remember I'll be watching." He warned the General who nodded only for Romana to ask.

"What about your human friends Doctor? They need to go home."

The Doctor then thought for a moment and asked the War Council.

"Can I have one last favour?"

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

The crew had returned to the tribe's camp where they rested from all that had happened. The knowledge that they had just fought in a battle to save the whole of creation from mad power crazed lunatics was something they needed to process. As they were bringing in the day's hunt they were disturbed by the noise of great engines as a blue police box appeared in the centre of the village. Everyone rushed out to see what was going on and when the Tardis had finished dematerializing the door opened revealing the Doctor who looked a great deal happier.

"So you found it then." Claire remarked as she came up to meet him.

"Yes it landed by the Northern poles. Survive anything." He said slapping the Tardis's outer casing lightly.

"Shame _Destiny_ could not." TJ said coming up to join the rest of them.

"About that." The Doctor said with a strange glint in his eye. They were all beckoned into his Tardis and returned to the pyramid like structure that they had landed on when they had first arrived in the Capital and as the amazed crew exited the Tardis they saw that the broken glass dome that had covered the city had been repaired and the Dalek wreckage was gone wiped away like it had never been there. But they were distracted from that by the Doctor pointing up at the now night sky.

"Look." He said simply and a screen appeared overhead allowing them to see what looked like piece of _Destiny's_ hull that had settled in orbit. Feeling angry the crew wondered why the Doctor had brought them here to see a portion of what had once been their ship drifting towards eventual destruction. Camille was about to go and give the Doctor a piece of her mind when suddenly something strange happened.

It was like someone had reversed time, from all around pieces seemed to fly towards the larger piece and connected on like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. The amazed crew watched as the mass grew bigger and bigger into a familiar shape. Finally the front section moved into place and the puzzle was complete leaving the crew breathless.

" _Destiny_." Eli said as their ship apparently restored floated there in space.

"Restored as it was before only better." The Doctor said proudly. "Everything you left on-board will still be there but only refreshed like new again." The crew looked on amazed when suddenly that last part clicked with something in Claire's memory.

" _There is no sign of age on this equipment at all."_ She had said and then. _"Like it's completely brand new never been used."_

She started remembering the day when Doctor Robert Caine and his people from Eden had come back to _Destiny_ after leaving the ship. The shuttle they had been in was just like the Doctor was describing and again she remembered the way the shuttle had suddenly appeared next to the ship. The answers to who had built the planet and its star and as well who had sent their lost crewmen back to them was suddenly crystal clear in her head. Not sure if she should say anything she let the Doctor continue speaking.

"The Timelords will send you back to where you were before arriving on this planet. You will not be able to find this planet again though. It is best given how much that needs to be done before Gallifrey can defend itself again whatever might threaten it."

"So this is it?" Molly asked feeling sad that the time had apparently come to be separated from the Doctor and his incredible world. The Doctor then said with a knowing look.

"Oh we will meet again. It took me a while to remember but we will meet again." He hinted with a sly smile. "My past, your future."

He was about to send them back to their ship with that last hint at what their future might hold when he seemed to suddenly remember something crucial or in fact two things.

"Oh Claire before I forget, when you get back to Earth there is a man called Henry van Statten. He has a big vault in Utah near Salt Lake City. There is a lot of alien technology inside so it might be best that when he disappears in few months the SGC pick up his collection rather than let it fall into the wrong hands."

"Consider it done." Claire said distracted still wondering what the future might hold if they were going to be meeting past versions of the Doctor and there was nothing to say that they might not meet this version of the Doctor again too. However that was not the only thing the Doctor had to say to her. He came up and whispered quietly in her ear.

"And Magnus Williams was sterile he could not have children so he is not your father."

With that bombshell delivered the Doctor stepped back and before Claire could even formulate the words to ask him to repeat what he had just said the Americans, the Russians, Molly, Claire and the Lucian Alliance crewmembers were all transported up to the ship leaving the Doctor standing alone on the top of the pyramid.

"Oh are they gone?" Clara asked coming out of the Tardis with a sad pout. "I wanted to say goodbye before they left."

"Maybe we will see them again." The Doctor suggested and she smiled hoping that they might.

"Oh I really think you might." Romana said as she finished walking up the incredible number of steps to the top of the pyramid. She did not look even winded amazing Clara who forgot to ask what she was talking about.

"So what next Romana?" The Doctor said with a smile at his old friend. "Run for election?"

"Oh god no." Romana said looking almost terror struck at the mere idea of trying to run Gallifrey again. "Leela and I are planning to go travelling as soon as we can get a decent Tardis. Even if we have to steal one." She said with a smirk.

"Sounds familiar." The Doctor said with considerable nostalgia but he then said to Romana giving her a hug. "Take care of yourself and if you need any help just call me."

"Of course." Romana said watching with a heavy heart as the Doctor climbed back into his Tardis and took off leaving to find adventures to live and villains to fight. Romana smiled as she wondered what she might get up once she was away from Gallifrey.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

On _Destiny_ the crew found themselves wherever they had been before fleeing the ship prior to its destruction. Claire, Lisa, Brody, Young, Camille and Rush all found themselves on the bridge which like the shuttle had been was spotless and looking like it had just rolled off the assembly line. Moving over to the consoles the scientists there checked them.

"Everything is working fine. We have shields, weapons, engines, sensors all of it and in perfect condition." Brody said in amazement while his co-workers all checked the database to make sure everything was there.

"We have the full database everything as it should be." Lisa reported as she examined it. Young sat in the centre chair and felt its greater plumpness. The lift door opened and Eli and Alina rushed out.

"It is all over the ship." Eli said with excitement as he marvelled at what the Timelords had done. Then Claire who was at the navigation console noticed something.

"We are right back where we started." She said not having felt a thing.

"Incredible." Rush said amazed wondering how on Earth the Timelords had achieved this.

"Well I think I'm ready to head home, I don't know about the rest of you." Young said and Claire smiled before inputting the coordinates for Earth while Rush turned to Alina and asked.

"Are you ready to go home Lieutenant?" The Russian Air Force junior officer did not need to be told twice.

"Yes sir."

Smiling Claire engaged the hyperdrive and the ship was about to shoot into hyperspace when Eli suddenly thought of something.

"How are we going to explain all this too General O'Neill and Director Artois?"

 **XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

 _I hope that everybody who reads this likes the ending, I will write a few more stories about the Destiny crew and their further adventures if there is enough interest. I am thinking of a Battlestar Galactica Blood and Chrome crossover and maybe some more meetings with the Doctor but beyond that I am not sure._

 _Thank you to everyone who reviewed! It was brilliant to hear feedback and kept me going when I was down._

 _Sage1988 out_


End file.
